Prioritising customers and freshness

Paul Mifsud’s passion for high quality and fresh produce has led to nine years of success for his Bellarine farmgate grocery store, Farmer’s Harvest.

Mifsud and his wife Mary started growing hydroponic lettuce in Swan Bay during 1994, and started a glasshouse on their Bellarine farm in 2011.

Originally, the idea for the storefront came from Mary and was something she has wanted to do for a while, and the shop, known as Farmer’s Harvest, opened in 2013.

The lettuces grown on the farm are sold in store, and Mifsud sources the rest of their products from local growers where possible, with the rest coming from the fruit and vegetable market.

The farm also supplies their produce to markets and Coles, something Mifsud said has been a good partnership for them.

 

Over the past nine years, the business has grown to include products made and produced locally on the Bellarine including, butter, bread, meats and more.

“We started with a bit of produce, I was buying it from a third party at that time because I was in in the shop all the time and then I stared going to the market,” Misfud said.

“We’ve got bigger and bigger and added more fridges and shelves, we keep bringing in more new stuff and we find spots for it.

“We’ve got everything in here, start with meat, cheese for platter, berries, fruit, veggies and then we’ve got your organic milk, all your dips and everything.”

Mifsud said Farmer’s Harvest tried to stock products that are local to region and things that aren’t available in supermarkets.

 

Unlike many businesses, the COVID pandemic had a positive impact on Farmer’s Harvest and saw them introduce their fruit and vegetable boxes, which Mifsud said “went crazy.”

“I was buying potatoes, nearly half a tonne and within 20 minutes they were out the door, it was great.”

The fruit and vegetable boxes are still popular today, filled with seasonal produce and delivered around the Geelong and Bellarine regions.

“We haven’t stopped, other people stopped, we haven’t, people still wanted them and we’ve got our regulars who want them.”

 

Compared to supermarkets, Mifsud said the prices at Farmer’s Harvest were very similar, but their quality sets them apart.

“As a matter of fact, we are cheaper in certain things, but certain things we can’t beat them on.

“We’re rarely overpriced than the supermarket, we’ve got to make minimum margin and we do that and that’s it.

“As long as it pays the bills and the wages and make a dollar, I’m not greedy.

“The supermarket is the one-stop shop, but they all whinge about the fresh produce because it doesn’t last.”

Above all else, customers and the quality and freshness of produce is the number one priority for the team at Farmers Harvest, Mifsud said it’s something they’re very proud of.

 

 

“We see that people love our product, they come in here and a week later they come back and they’ll tell you we’ve still got your product in the fridge or on the shelf and it’s still like we just brought it.

“You explain to people what the products are, where you get it from and how fresh we get it and it works, we have people coming back.”

Their range of organic produce, which continues to grow, is also popular with customers.

Mifsud said he guarantees all of their organic produce is certified and understands the importance of getting it right.

“I’ll make sure everything is certified when it comes to organic and I tell people that, and if they have any problems ring me straight away or tell me straight away.”

 

For Mifsud, meeting his customers is what he enjoys most about running the business, saying they can have a cry on each other’s shoulder and a laugh together.

“You get your regulars, and you get really friendly with them, they respect you, they need something, we will help them, they need and a product and we haven’t got it, we’ll try to get it for them. It’s good fun, I’ve created a lot of friends.”

In the past 12 months, Mifsud has stepped back from the business but still checks in on the shop through the week, saying he wants everything to be perfect.

Farmer’s Harvest is at 1680 Bellarine Highway.

For more information, head to farmers-harvest.com.au or keep up to date with what’s on offer through the Farmer’s Harvest page on Facebook.