Consolidation at the Market
In addition to the upgrades, some longtime tenants have closed up shop, selling stalls to other merchants on the market. Over the past year, C.M. Produce LLC, Luna Fresh Greenhouse Corporation, Morris Okun, Inc., and Korean Farms have all closed and sold. Gordon says vendor S. Katzman Produce, Inc. took over Okun’s 16 units, adding to their existing 21 units.
“We hate to see a company go, but we’re also excited about the opportunity to work out of 37 units,” shares Mario Andreani, general manager at Katzman. “There will be a six- to nine-month buildout to put in a state-of-the-art facility that’s customer friendly and has continuous cold chain. In terms of the market’s location, we’re not sure what’s going to happen, and we have to continue to develop and grow our business to better serve the customer.”
The current trend seems to be one of consolidation, resulting in fewer, larger, one-stop produce houses at Hunts Point. In 1967, there were 122 merchants on the market; today, 36 remain.
To some, this is the evolution of the business, but to others like Hunts Point administrator Gordon, it is worth pondering. “The concern,” she explains, is whether “it will be harder for smaller merchants to compete with the larger, full service companies.” However, this shouldn’t significantly impact commodity pricing, Gordon stresses. “Even if we only have a handful of large companies left, they will still be competing with each other in a very close environment, which will keep pricing reasonable.”
