On Wednesday, May 28, ALEM GmbH celebrated the grand opening of its new company location at the local Stuttgart wholesale market. Guests included Turkish Consul General Makbule Kocak and Trade Attaché Cavide Topbas, as well as Thomas Lehmann, Managing Director of Märkte Stuttgart GmbH, and Torsten von Appen, Head of the City's Economic Development Department. The total capacity of the hall is 5,300 square meters, including office space, of which ALEM currently leases 2,900 square meters.
© ALEM GmbH
Impressions from the opening ceremony. Clockwise: View of the new cold storage facility, co-founder Bezmi Hamurcu, cake cutting with wholesale market manager Thomas Lehmann (center), and Consul General Makbule Kocak.
The management of the family-owned company, which has been based at the wholesale market for almost a quarter of a century, took the opportunity to present and discuss the challenges surrounding the import of fruit and vegetables from Turkey, its most important source of supply. An important factor is the border controls at the Turkish-Bulgarian border and the associated waiting times and additional costs. This has already led to a shift to products from other sources in some cases. Nevertheless, around 60 percent of ALEM GmbH's total goods turnover still comes from Turkey.
© ALEM GmbH
Aerial view of the modern company site
"My father founded the company over 20 years ago, and today the second generation is already playing a leading role in the company," reports Bünyamin Hamurcu, one of three sons in the family business. "In the beginning, we had eight trucks and about twelve employees; today, we have twelve trucks and over 40 employees. Over the years, we have mainly specialized in supplying independent supermarkets. Exports to France in particular are a growing sales market for us today," says Hamurcu.
© ALEM GmbH
Insights into the new cold storage rooms
When asked, wholesale market manager Thomas Lehmann looked back on the company's impressive history. "ALEM came to the Stuttgart wholesale market 25 years ago and started small with three boxes. Before that, the Hamurcu family ran a 100-square-meter vegetable business in Remscheid. The company has grown over the years and now has over 1,000 customers, 15 trucks, and 40 employees. With the sons joining the business, the succession was also settled, so we decided to lease the building to ALEM, among others. ALEM is well organized, reliable, and shows a lot of commitment. The Stuttgart wholesale market wishes them every success and a good start with the expansion."
For more information:
Bünyamin Hamurcu
ALEM GmbH
Stuttgart Wholesale Market
Tel: +49 1520 3834880
[email protected]
www.alemgmbh.de
