Any restaurant owners importing items directly from Italy?

[PizzaVera]

I am just curious if any owners actually cut out the middle man and go straight to the source?

if you do import directly yourselves do you feel it really saves on the bottom line? or have you found the headache is not worth it.

I have met different owners and some just buy locally through the supplier and other owners import themselves.
I didn't know these guys well enough to ask about prices and costs etc.. so why not ask on this forum.

I am just curious to know a little more about importing yourself and how much you really save at the end of the day., and is the best route to take.

any information is really appreciated.

[JConk007]

Not sure on this but I think--
Not really feasible. These guys are pros! and import a lot! you need containers (full!) , constant trips to Italy (I'm in) quality control, a home seaport, transportation to and from the boat... Not sure if it could work individually. If you could get so goodies on a shared container and have a friend to drop it off maybe?
But to save a few bucks on the individual Item Don't think it would work
 but again its Just a guess?
Hang around  a while become friends with as many people as possible, and you'll be surprised how many things you can get help with.
John

[jeff v]

I've talked with plenty of distributors and manufacturers lately, and John is pretty much right. Not saying it can't be done, but not worth the headache most times IMO. They buy large quantities, and save not only on product cost but shipping as well. Then you have customs etc... I'm not aware of any restaurant owners who have time for that.

Jeff

[TheBlum]

We order direct, from the source in Italy.  We order by the container and split it up (flour, tomatoes, salt, peppers, etc).  We save tons of money this way, instead of going through our reps.  Plus,  this ensures the freshest and best product.  We've taken many trips out to Italy to hand select our products.  If we need to though, we can order by the pallet; however, this rasies the price quite a bit.  Our Buffala we also order direct from Italy; however, we pick it up from the cargo in the airport (since we order limited quanities per week).  It is made on Monday, shipped to us on Tuesday and we pick it up on Wednesday.  Talk about fresh 

We also do over 3000 pizzas a week though .. so it's easy for us to move product

If you need contacts, send me a PM

Brandon