WE GOT STARTED WITH FRESH2YOU LESS THAN THREE YEARS AGO. TODAY WE BOOST NEWLY BUILT PREMISES OF NO LESS THAN 5,000 M2 OF COLD STORAGE SPACE AND ANOTHER 500 M2 OF OFFICE SPACE IN BARENDRECHT.
CASH & CARRY IN HIGH DEMAND
“Unlike other trading centres, Barendrecht hardly has any cash & carry trade any more. We stepped into that gap in the market and it worked out well. There proved to be a strong demand for it in Barendrecht. Many market vendors from the Randstad conurbation and elsewhere in the Netherlands come to buy our products here. We too were surprised to see how large this customer group still is. Customers can come here as early as 5 am., so they don’t need any interim storage themselves. We work with high-quality shippers, but we can also sell some proper Class II trade” Corné Roks explains.
Cash & carry customers can be serviced even better at our new location. Once inside, where the promotions are on display, there are three cash & carry cells with temperature regimes of 12, 8 and 2 degrees Celsius. “This way, we can deliver the fruit, vegetables and bananas under ideal conditions. Elsewhere in the cold storage, push-back racks are used and pallets can be stored three high.
Click here for an impression of our beautiful cash & carry warehouse in Barendrecht, Transportweg 19
“WE REALLY SET OURSELVES APART WITH GOOD OLD-FASHIONED SERVICE, LIKE IT WAS FIFTEEN YEARS AGO OR SO. CUSTOMERS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME FOR A CHAT AND A CUP OF COFFEE”
CORNÉ ROKS
SUSTAINABLE NEW-BUILD FOR FRESH2YOU
“The advantage of a new facility is that you can set it up the way you want it”, Evert van Oers explains. “Given the growth we are experiencing, we opted to fully utilise the one-hectare plot. Construction went smoothly. Bias Architecten come up with a great design straight away. The main contractor was Vrolijk, Prohuis the construction supervisor, Nijssen took care of the cooling technology and Barth was responsible for installation technology. The racks were purchased from Jungheinrich. The new facility has thought of every detail. The commercial department, for example, has a view of the warehouse, the cash & carry customers can load their trade dry under the canopy and the new building has an elevator and a toilet for the disabled.
We will also get GPR certification for sustainable construction. The facility has been built as sustainably as possible, which includes Ammonia/CO2 cooling and we use the residual cooling heat to heat up the offices”, Evert explains.
In addition to the cash & carry trade, Fresh2You also has an important wholesale function. “It’s striking that many people didn’t initially see this lot. We made the deliberate choice to establish ourselves within the current industrial estate. We draw a lot of synergy from the estate, because there is a lot of trading within it. Business park Nieuw-Reijerwaard was another option but here, we can connect directly to the existing infrastructure and take advantage of an established environment”, Evert explains.
“OLD-FASHIONED” SERVICE
“There are quite a few suppliers for European retail offering home-grown produce. These volumes never quite fully match demand. If these companies are unable to sell their trade, we take it off their hands”, Corné Roks explains. “We really set ourselves apart with good old-fashioned service, like it was fifteen years ago or so. Customers are always welcome for a chat and a cup of coffee. On the other hand, we know our customers so well that customers who order by phone can load their trade within ten minutes.”
The bulk of the trade at Fresh2You consists of bananas, citruses and vegetables. The wholesaler practically supplies a total range already and aims to expand that even further in the new facility. Fresh2You mainly imports from Southern Europe and Africa. For example, the wholesaler causes a furore with its own citrus brands Brixfruit and Famisa. And we produce and import our famous green beans and French beans again under the name of Carlo products. The main sales markets for Europe are Germany, the United Kingdom and Scandinavia. According to Corné, Fresh2You hardly has any seasonal peaks. “Things can, of course, be quieter during the holidays, but if you have trade, you have customers!
