Change at Nardella Inc., located at the Philadelphia Wholesale Produce Market, is done with patient intent. The company, which occupies units G-4 through G-6 in the blue section of the facility, has 32 years of successful business history.

John Durante, president of Nardella told The Produce News that business is solid because the company recognizes its strengths.

“We know what works for us and we stay with what we know,” he said. “But we also stay abreast and on top of trends. For example, we began an ethnic category program a few years ago suggested by our sales team. It’s grown considerably and we continue to expand it as we feel necessary.”

Watching trends also translates into keeping a close eye on cultural population changes in the region. Durante pointed out that 10 years ago the Indian population in the Philadelphia and surrounding areas was less than one percent.

“Today, that number has changed to about 10 percent,” he said. “They have opened mom and pop type stores to accommodate their own culture, but also customers of other cultures in their communities. These could include Africans, Latinos, Asians and other cultures. And they sell a lot of conventional items like apples and pears.”

Mike Reed oversees Nardella’s ethnic line with a keen eye. The program is strong in dried and fresh specialty peppers, tomatillos, cactus leaves, and “a lot of cilantro,” Durante said, as well as cactus pears, guava, ginger, garlic, aloe vera, water coconut, papaya, mangos, dragonfruit and more. Products are produced domestically, in Mexico and even in Asia.

One of the biggest surprise successes in the company’s ethnic line was with its venture into corn tortillas over a year ago.

“We began selling 10 to 15 boxes of corn tortillas a week and were soon selling hundreds of boxes a week,” explained Durante. “This year sales are about 50 percent higher than last year. We have a source that does an outstanding job, and having the right tortillas is the key to success.”

Nardella also specializes in fruits from around the world. It handles all stone fruits, citrus, grapes and tropical items. It imports apples, grapes and numerous other products from South America, South Africa and New Zealand, providing its customers with year-round supplies.

“We stay positive as we look to the future,” said Durante. “Everyone in the Northeast had a rough winter. The Philadelphia region suffered less weather-wise than further north, but many people in those regions are our customers. When their business is off, ours is off, and they were really bogged down with snowstorms. We’re glad to have that behind us and we’re looking toward a great rest of the year.”