CHICAGO — “Ethnic items are our specialty. That is what we do and what we do well,” said Steve Chmelovsky Sr., the president and chief executive officer of EveryDay Fresh Produce Inc., located on the Chicago International Produce Market. In its product mix, “we are nicely positioned. We did that from the start,” when Chmelovsky founded the company 11 years ago. “Things are going very well.”

EveryDay offers more than 250 different produce items. Chmelovsky said some of these offerings are as small as 15-20 boxes a week. Because of its diverse product mix, Chmelovsky said he deals with many different growers from around the Americas. “You need a lot of smaller farmers. Not everyone can grow everything. The grower needs to know his commodity.”

His large-volume items are mangos, papayas and okra.

Among his sources are the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Hawaii, Guatemala and Mexico. As a result, he receives “a lot of mixed loads” through seaports in Miami, New Jersey and Los Angeles.

He said all of his growers are FDA and USDA compliant on U.S. requirements. “In 11 years, we have never had any issues.

“We have shippers who have been with us since we started,” he said. “When you have the right shipper you want to build a partnership. That is a reason we always have product. When items are short, my customers buy from me because no one else has it.”

For EveryDay, one large-volume regular supplier is Best Oriental Produce Inc., based in Los Angeles.

Chmelovsky said the few remaining chain stores are missing opportunities by not catering to their ethnic clientele. This is an area filled by independent retailers, who are the lifeblood of EveryDay Fresh.

Looking to the future, “We just try to keep improving what we do,” Chmelovsky said. “We look at different ways to package products and look for any new items that pertain to our customers. We ask our customers: ‘Do we not carry what you need?’ Our customers know this is the place to come to get ethnic products.”

Beyond having the right inventory, a company focus is to give “knowledgeable and personable sales time” to customers. “We want to go above and beyond in giving good service. We never want to see anyone leave dissatisfied. In this business you need to deal with people one on one. The buyer has to be comfortable with the salesman and we give the buyer everything he needs. If a truck is late” for a customer awaiting product “we try to take it out on a van” to provide service as quickly as possible.

In late April Chmelovsky said that his son, Steve Chmelovsky Jr., was to graduate May 10 with a business degree from Benedictine University in Lisle, IL. Steve Jr. was on the golf team at Benedictine.

Chmelovsky indicated he’s giving Steve Jr. two weeks of vacation after graduation before beginning a full-time career at EveryDay.