Experience Running A Verduleria?

[ElQueso]

I haven't heard anyone mention being in this business here, but I figured I'd throw this out there.

First, I'll ask but I know it's probably fruitless to do so: I don't need to hear about how hard starting a business is in Argentina and all the generic issues that go along with it. I've been here 8 years 99.9% full time, and started off doing business here to begin with.

I'm looking for anyone who knows the verduleria business to see about possibly confirming some information or getting some advice.

I have an opportunity to start one up, with a location that would be very nice, though fairly expensive. About 70% of the start up costs (as far as we've been able to calculate), in fact, are move-in costs, with commissions, deposits, and an extra deposit in lieu of a guarantee (if I can find a guarantee, I can cut those move-in costs by about 60%. I've found three so far, maybe I can get another one!).

It's going to be a family business. The brothers have worked in verdulerias for the last 7 years and know the business pretty well, as far as the day-to-day operations, where to get the produce, when to order, they have some good ideas on what to do with the older stuff, etc. The place we're looking at is a local 13 by 18 meters with a customer bathroom, and a private area behind, accessible by a corridor from the local via a separate door from the store front, or directly from the store area itself in the back. There are three bedrooms, a bathroom and a kitchen back there. We'd have people living on premise at all times. Solves a lot of family issues if we can make this work.

BTW - if anyone knows of any space like this for rent, let me know - this is the best we've found so far, but there's a lot of space available in the city. But we don't want to be in high-rent areas. This place, for example, is pretty much between Parque Patricios and Constitucion. Yeah, yeah, maybe not the best place, but the brothers and their families live close to there and know what it's all about. We don't want to get too far from Recoleta, like on the other side of the city, either. We have too much family strung between Recoleta and Parque Patricios

More than anything, I'm just looking to verify some of the things my brothers-in-law are talking about, some of which seem a bit odd, but this is Argentina.

 

[Rich One]

IMHO to succeed in the Veduleria business you need to have the Bolivian connection, plus buy inexpensive goods at the CM and sell them as First Grade produce. Buy a 5 kilo box of lettuce at $30 and sell the kilo at $30 pesos. Like my Bolivian owned Veduleria does

Then some people blame the Supermarkets...

 

[Dublin2BuenosAires]

IMHO to succeed in the Veduleria business you need to have the Bolivian connection, plus buy inexpensive goods at the CM and sell them as First Grade produce. Buy a 5 kilo box of lettuce at $30 and sell the kilo at $30 pesos. Like my Bolivian owned Veduleria does

Then some people blame the Supermarkets...

I assumed they all sourced their produce from the mercado central? Or from a wholesaler who sourced from their first and sold on to them?

 

[Rich One]

I assumed they all sourced their produce from the mercado central? Or from a wholesaler who sourced from their first and sold on to them?

My verdulero goes to (CM) Central Market..... ass-u-me

 

[RichardP]

You are a brave soul to enter into any business venture here but I wish you the best of luck.

 

[Roxana]

I read an article at an argentinian business page about zucchini, the verduleria located across the street of barrancas de belgrano, on Av Juramento, one block before to the red bridge or arch at the entrance to barrio chino, walking from Av Cabildo. It is a small chain, with another verduleria at Av Cabildo near Av Congreso, and another few stores; they plan to open more branches.

Traditionally, the key to the verduleria business is to wake up on time to be at mercado central, know how to choose the merchandise and bargain the prices. It is your choice to believe the numbers that the one going to mercado central will show to you. it is better to have a fridge to keep the food and perhaps go to mercado central once every other day.

Most of the bolivianos rent or buy few hectareas and skip the mercado central.

 

[ElQueso]

One of the things I was blown away about was how the verdulerias made a lot of their money, and how. One of the brothers mentioned that, using a kilo of tomatoes as an example: the farmer sells the kilo to the central market for 3 pesos. The central market sells to the verduleria for 40 pesos and the verduleria sells to the individual at his store for 80-90 pesos. But (here's the kicker to me), they sell to restaurants and other "bulk" buyers for $180 pesos, supposedly because the tomatoes they sell to the bulk customers are "premium". But he tells me that's crap, what's actually sent to the restaurants and such is pretty much the same thing that's sold to individuals. Often the owners even try to send some of their "more ripe" tomatoes to the restaurants because after all, they're going to cut them up for salads and sauces anyway.

We were planning on buying or renting a couple of "cámaras" (big fridges) to keep the vegetables fresh and not go to the central market every day.

I didn't realize the Bolivians would grow their own produce. One of the things we were actually discussing is one day actually buying a truck and trying to make some deals out in the province with growers, but I don't know how likely that scenario is.

Also, the verdulerias for whom the brothers work for throw out a lot of produce when it gets unsaleable as whole veggies or fruits and they were thinking that we could make salads, fruit salads, juices and such and sell those as well in an attempt to get the most out of the unsold produce.

 

[Ries]

I live in a neighborhood with at least a dozen within 2 blocks of me.
and the one we shop at has a truck, and they go out to the market every morning.
With so many choices, most people here are pretty saavy shoppers. If your produce is three days old, I aint buying it, and neither are the housewives and maids around here.
Salads and fruit salads are a good idea, sure- but they need to be fresh, and really good salads, not just a way to disguise the old stuff.

 

[Noruega]

Hi El Cheese, sounds like it could work. I don't have direct experience in this, but I did do a lot of buying at the mercado central and I know a few verduleros, one of them very well. He always said it was key to go himself, not send someone else/rely on a middle man, and he had good connections with the vendors that he used there. I.e. he'd go to the same ones always, etc. But I am sure the guys know this already.

The local sounds very good, quite large, and great to have people on site. And with a decent space, they can sell things that have a better profit margin, such as cut up vegetables and salad ingredients, fruit salads, etc. On my previous block, there were two verdulerias: One was a little cheaper, but the other had plenty of clients because of their prepared stuff, because they were much friendlier, had shorter lines etc. The willingness to pay higher prices will of course depend on socio-economic nature of the particular area, but I do see some verdulerias trying to position themselves as "fancier" or better quality and it seems to work.

They can also market it as a "specialty" verduleria, making sure to have things that are a little unusal, to become the go-to place in that area for certain things, take specialty orders, and try to become the provider for maybe a cafe or something in the neighborhood.

 

[mc kenna]

I know first hand growers here in Chivilcoy , but i don't know their prices . i normally get my 2 tomatoes i buy per year free of charge
If you want i can put you in contact with them or you can come down and see for yourself (pm if you'd like)