WORK
_ ‘FANTOOSH IS ALL ‘ 1- - ABOUT BEING A BIT & . . _ , DECADENT AND SPOILING YOURSELF '
Cafe culture
Jay Richardson talks to ANDRE ALEXANDER, a self-confessed keen amateur foodie who is making hay with a popular delicatessen.
otwithstanding the occasional dig by a French
president. as a nation we've never been
choosier about our food. Sunday newspaper supplements are jam—packed with advice on buying. cooking or excluding it from our diets. The detnand for fair trade and organic products continues to grow and everyone who‘s anyone appreciates a great recipe for hummus.
One man prospering from this trend is Andre Alexander. managing director of Fanloosh. the popular delicatessen and cafe in Glasgow‘s Princes Square. "l‘en years ago. a delicatessen could get away
with jtist selling nice hits of York ham and a slice of
(‘amembertf the 29-year—old from Milngavie claims. ‘But the market‘s more sophisticated now. You‘ve got to work a lot harder to source the right ingredients and he actively involved in food fairs. educate yourself about the wines people are drinking and really listen to your customers.‘
l-‘antoosh only opened last October. but the groundwork was laid in the two years Alexander spent consulting for Scottish fish-and-game merchants lnverawe Smokehouses. trying to ‘get them into tip—market delicatessens. Harvey Nichols. l-‘ortnum and Masons and other fashionable
establishments‘ in conjunction with the University of
(ilasgow‘s School of Business and Management. Before that. he'd worked in Paris. '/.urich. Barcelona and the liar liast as a supply chain manager for a textile company. ‘All the time I was travelling l was wondering what‘s the commonality here. why am I
102 THE LIST 2:) Sup t) (M :Hio‘)
liking this job'." he recalls. ‘It wasn‘t because I particularly enjoyed selling thread. It was the cultural aspects and a huge part of that was the food. So I‘m not a professional foodie. I’m a keen amateur trying to go professional.~
In addition to his own savings. Fantoosh was launched with investment from his family. But their help wasn‘t only financial. ‘Setting up in a city centre is usually restricted to chains with a head office in London.‘ he explains. ‘Very rarely does a one—man show come in. But my mother designed the shop and my stepfather is a surveyor. so with their help. plus that of Scottish linterprise and my former boss at the business school I had a support network.‘
As his own boss. he‘s confident enough in his three full-time and three part-time staff to have ceased working seven days a week. But he still begins each
morning washing salads and spends his only day off
sourcing produce. His best sellers remain ‘good. simple food‘: coffees. chocolates and a French salad dressing that ‘just flies off the shelf‘. but he aims to develop the hamper side of his business and branch into supplying corporate events. ‘l‘antoosh is all about being a bit decadent and spoiling yourself.‘ he explains. ‘Without wishing to sound pretentious. I want to establish a lifestyle brand.‘
I l he l._ist gratefully acknowledges the support of Business Gateway in funding this page.
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