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I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

deepsouthventures.com

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Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#91

Post by cpursley »

jmkd wrote: post #84
eightturn wrote: post #32

author here : ) happy to answer questions if you have any. We also have a twitter account here if you want to follow along: https://x.com/vidaliaonions

I live in a mountain valley in Mallorca where hundreds of tons of perfect Canoneta oranges fall to the floor and rot each year because the cost of picking them outweighs their market value. The valley became wealthy from this fruit in the 19th century but the economics no longer add up. [0] At the same time the price of orange juice (elsewhere) has skyrocketed [1], yet this rural community seems unable to take advant…

I was shocked by this in rural Spain as well. Just tons of high citrus and olives rotting on trees because their harvest can't be done mechanically.

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#92

Post by mschuster91 »

forty wrote: post #78
pverheggen wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's similar to French wines and cheese. News to me that we have this in the US but it totally makes sense. We have a few of these in the PNW, like Hermiston melons and Walla Walla onions.

It's a broader EU thing (named AOP - protected designation of origin) rather than French only, though you are right that France has plenty of those for wines and cheese. But it's also protecting Greek Feta, Italian Parma ham, Scottish Shetland Wool, etc

Nürnberger Rostbratwürstchen and Munich Beer come to my mind from Germany!

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#93

Post by cpursley »

jliptzin wrote: post #46
stephenlf wrote: post #7

Absolutely insane way to start a business. “Let me blow 2 grand on a domain name. Not sure what it’s for, yet.”

Not really sure what's so crazy about that. A brick and mortar shop will spend way more than that on renting a good location for their business when they have no clue whether they'll turn a profit. This is just the digital equivalent of that. People trust authoritative domains like vidaliaonions.com way more than something like vidaliaonions-direct.net and they're given more SEO weight as well. At least I know that u…

Yeah, exactly. Go price the equipment it takes to rig out a new upstart plumbing biz (trunk/van, all the hardware, insurance, etc). Startup web businesses is insanely cheap, even with a couple grand on a domain.

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#94

Post by brightbeige »

Jolter wrote: post #66
kfk wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How would you market such a business in 2026? I am from an Italian region where farmer grow many special coltures, and I was always a bit surprised why they don’t try selling on the internet. I ended up convincing myself it is not a viable business model.

I live in Sweden, and almost every year I discover someone I work with or have friends in common with, who has a friend or relative in Italy, or Greece who farms oranges/olives/cheese or what have you. And this friend in Sweden is selling their produce by word of mouth. So once a year at harvest, the relative has someone drives a truck full of olive oil 2000 kilometers north, and dozens of Swedes turn up at an appoin…

There is a lot of “paperwork” to do it as a web shop, if you know what I mean.

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#95

Post by Jolter »

brightbeige wrote: post #94
Jolter wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in Sweden, and almost every year I discover someone I work with or have friends in common with, who has a friend or relative in Italy, or Greece who farms oranges/olives/cheese or what have you. And this friend in Sweden is selling their produce by word of mouth. So once a year at harvest, the relative has someone drives a truck full of olive oil 2000 kilometers north, and dozens of Swedes turn up at an appoin…

There is a lot of “paperwork” to do it as a web shop, if you know what I mean.

I’m sure taxes are part of it, but keep in mind it’s a toll free union after all. They could easily do this above board and just declare the Italian VAT as they do selling to locals.

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#96

Post by dugidugout »

jliptzin wrote: post #46
stephenlf wrote: post #7

Absolutely insane way to start a business. “Let me blow 2 grand on a domain name. Not sure what it’s for, yet.”

Not really sure what's so crazy about that. A brick and mortar shop will spend way more than that on renting a good location for their business when they have no clue whether they'll turn a profit. This is just the digital equivalent of that. People trust authoritative domains like vidaliaonions.com way more than something like vidaliaonions-direct.net and they're given more SEO weight as well. At least I know that u…

You believe brick and mortar shops put money down on a location with no plan at all? This is what OP did, your analogy is pretty weak.

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#97

Post by brightbeige »

Jolter wrote: post #95
brightbeige wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is a lot of “paperwork” to do it as a web shop, if you know what I mean.

I’m sure taxes are part of it, but keep in mind it’s a toll free union after all. They could easily do this above board and just declare the Italian VAT as they do selling to locals.

I think for food products there are more considerations, like labeling and traceability.

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#98

Post by leobg »

jmkd wrote: post #84
eightturn wrote: post #32

author here : ) happy to answer questions if you have any. We also have a twitter account here if you want to follow along: https://x.com/vidaliaonions

I live in a mountain valley in Mallorca where hundreds of tons of perfect Canoneta oranges fall to the floor and rot each year because the cost of picking them outweighs their market value. The valley became wealthy from this fruit in the 19th century but the economics no longer add up. [0] At the same time the price of orange juice (elsewhere) has skyrocketed [1], yet this rural community seems unable to take advant…

You have Mr. Kraus making sorbet and selling that on the internet, don’t you? Though I guess he doesn’t come close to using up all of the supply… and his domain name is a bit more complicated than what Peter usually goes for. I can’t, to this day, remember how to pronounce Sòller. We keep asking the locals every time we visit. Do you own a grove yourself?

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#99

Post by eightturn »

jmkd wrote: post #84
eightturn wrote: post #32

author here : ) happy to answer questions if you have any. We also have a twitter account here if you want to follow along: https://x.com/vidaliaonions

I live in a mountain valley in Mallorca where hundreds of tons of perfect Canoneta oranges fall to the floor and rot each year because the cost of picking them outweighs their market value. The valley became wealthy from this fruit in the 19th century but the economics no longer add up. [0] At the same time the price of orange juice (elsewhere) has skyrocketed [1], yet this rural community seems unable to take advant…

I tend to avoid projects where the economics are challenging, or where the demand has fallen off. Vidalia is unique because it's a boutique item, not a commodity. Because of it's unique nature, we're able to charge premium pricing, allowing us to stay in business (& even at our premium prices, the margins are razor thin, so we're constantly watching bottom line). While I tremendously enjoy this project, this is not an easy business to operate.

Re: I sell onions on the Internet (2019)

#100

Post by pinkmuffinere »

selfmodruntime wrote: post #86

> but for kicks & giggles, I dropped in a bid around $2,200 ’cause I was confident I’d be outbid Boy do I wish I could just drop 2k on a whim for a vanity project

Not to minimize the amount (2k is a lot), or obligations you may have (family, etc), but sometimes you can change your life in small ways to make those sort of impulse buys more affordable. Renting a room instead of a house, buying an old used car instead of new, etc. These kinds of changes are (to me) a small inconvenience, with big rewards
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