The Perishable Specialist registers growth
The Perishable Specialist registers growth
As Frank Ramos sees it, growth in this economy is a good indicator that business is good.
In 2011, The Perishable Specialist Inc., based in Doral, FL, expanded by adding an accounting wing to its existing building. In 2012, the company added three more people to its staff.
Frank Ramos“We are doing pretty well,” said Mr. Ramos, founder and president of the customs brokerage firm that he owns with his wife, Ana. “We had a good year. Our just-opened accounting department wing is doing very well and since we last spoke [a year ago] we’ve gone up to 20 employees. In these economic times that’s pretty good. Others are downsizing, but we’re growing.”
While the economy is the favorite whipping boy of political pundits from coast to coast, Mr. Ramos said that he has nothing to complain about. “As long as our customers continue to bring in the staple items, they will do all right and we will do all right,” he said.
He added that there might be a bigger economic impact on importers bringing in specialty items, but he focuses on the major commodities. He listed the top items that The Perishable Specialist works on as asparagus from Peru, blueberries from Argentina and Chile, year-round tropicals from many points of origin, sno peas from Guatemala, and mangos from several South American and Central American countries.
The Perishable Specialist has only its Miami area office, but Mr. Ramos said, “We have a national permit that allows us to do remote filings for our customers in other ports, such as Philadelphia and the West Coast.”
He added that for the remote filings the company only handles ocean transportation.
As the heavy Peruvian asparagus season approaches, this longtime customs broker said that the change in fumigation protocol is a good thing for the industry. For much of the volume in 2011, importers and their custom house brokers were operating under stricter fumigation laws that required additional hours of fumigation and aeration.
“[The USDA] has reverted back to the previous protocol, which is better for everyone and puts less stress on the asparagus itself,” he said.
