It was a philanthropic endeavour that stumbled upon a gap in the market; now The Fruit and Veg Man is thriving
Former personal trainer Sanjay Roy decided to set up a fruit and veg delivery service to raise money for Keech Hospice Care during the pandemic. However, the tech-first business soon became a hit, and as Sanjay began spending increasing time refunding parts of the country he couldn’t reach, he decided to franchise (with charity donations remaining a part of this.) Here, Sanjay explains how the brand has reached the heights it has.
How have you differentiated The Fruit and Veg Man brand?
Sanjay: None of us hold stock and this is where we blow everyone out the water, as it means you’re never going to have any issues with the quality of your produce. If an order comes in today and the customer wants it tomorrow, I get the order and send it to my supplier. In the morning, I pick it up and deliver it, so it’s at the freshest quality it can be. Fruit and veg is our commodity, our product is excellent customer service.
What’s a typical working week like for franchisees?
We encourage everyone to do a market – that could be in the middle of the week or on a Saturday. Monday is a busy delivery day because schools, hospitals, care homes, and businesses want their fruit and veg boxes at the start of the week. You need to deliver on three out of the five weekdays, take a day for admin, and make sure to take two days off for yourself.
Why do you feel this is a good investment?
Everyone needs fruit and veg. Our customer is anyone and everyone that is a human being. It’s not like we’ve got a niche target market. We can also charge less because we don’t have bricks and mortar to pay for. It means that franchisees get more in their pocket and we’re very good on our margins.
What has been the biggest benefit for franchisees so far?
Franchisees are earning a fortune – some of them more than I am. Our top franchisee is grossing monthly turnovers of £21,000, and he does three delivery days a week. I think the other thing is having work-life balance, the only caveat is that you’ve got to be an early riser. Days are typically 4am to 11am.
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