Tapping into consumers’ growing appetite for olive oil, Di Olivas, an oil and vinegar shop, opened a third location at Plaza Frontenac.
Owned by Shama Lakhani and run by her husband, Robert Palleja, the 1,000-square-foot store opened Nov. 2. The store dispenses its wares from shiny silver containers called fastis. “You get to taste the product directly from the container we dispense it from,” Palleja said.
Di Olivas first opened at West County Center three years ago, and it expanded to St. Charles last year. The business also has a holiday pop-up at St. Claire Square in Fairview Heights, Ill., open from October through December.
Palleja said Di Olivas has combined annual sales of $600,000. Olive oil and vinegar make up 75 percent of total sales, and food and gift items make up the remaining 25 percent. Between the oil and vinegar, sales are split 50-50.
But Di Olivas isn’t the first, or only, specialty oil and vinegar store in the St. Louis area.
There’s Extra Virgin, an Olive Ovation, located in The Crescent at 143 Carondelet Plaza in Clayton, and Vom Fass at 7314 Manchester Road in Maplewood. Olive Oils & More is located at 1063 Illinois 157 in Edwardsville, Ill., and Olive Oil Marketplace is at 108 W. Third St. in Alton, Ill.
Whether there’s enough business to go around remains to be seen. Olive oil consumption has grown nationwide, by about 40 percent in the last decade, according to the U.S. International Trade Commission.
[Source: St. Louis Business Journal]
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