© creative synergies, Laurent Bailly
A well-oiled machine from dawn
Manuel Matos has been in charge of our warehouse for 25 years. From Monday to Saturday, he and his team oversee the preparation of fruit and vegetable orders for our customers throughout Switzerland. It's a veritable ballet that begins every morning. Sorting, washing, packaging, labeling, crating, and palletizing: everything is done quickly to ensure maximum freshness.
Upstream, production adapts as much as possible. Tomatoes and cucumbers, for example, must be picked six or seven days a week. But other products, like lettuce, can wait in the ground: we then harvest them according to the day's orders.
Logistics takes over once the goods arrive at the warehouse. Finding Manuel is like a treasure hunt: the safest bet is to call him. He shares a few words with us as he passes by: "In winter, it's a little quieter, but in high season like now, it's intense. We receive most of the orders first thing in the morning and start with the ones that are going out first. But new requests arrive gradually, sometimes at the last minute. In any case, we prepare them the same day. We're used to working quickly."
On the roads from Monday to Sunday
Another key figure in our logistics team: Armando Ribeiro. A driver and team leader, he has been working with us for 33 years. He and his colleagues crisscross the roads of western Switzerland, in the French-speaking cantons and Bern. For the rest of the country, we rely on transport partners.
An average of 350 pallets of fruit and vegetables leave our logistics center every day. Deliveries take place seven days a week, following a highly organized schedule. Armando tells us more before getting back behind the wheel of his newly loaded truck: "We have different rounds and we take turns: one week in Geneva, the next in Vaud, and so on. This way, everyone knows how to go everywhere and we can cover for each other. For some customers, we leave in the middle of the night to be there by 5 a.m. For others, we drive in the afternoon. They choose their own days and times. We adapt to their needs."
Logistics at the service of freshness
Preparing, loading, delivering: every step is designed to reduce lead times. Whether handling a last-minute order, driving at night, or working weekends, everyone contributes. It's a collective organization, based on experience and responsiveness, that enables us to deliver fresh products every day.