7 minute read
The Sheer Experience of Gusta la Puglia in Albania
Since 2017, Gusta la Puglia has been providing the traditional taste from Puglia in Albania. The products are imported from Puglia. The success of Gusta la Puglia is a fine combination of the simple tasting recipes that were not seen before in Albania with the top quality of the products.
Its values are primarily quality and Italian identity, factors that influence everything that the company does.
“I think that Albanians understand whether a product is of good quality or not so I tried my best to import high quality products and to create some combinations with those ingredients trying to remain as faithful as I could to Puglia’s tradition,” Antonello Pastoressa, Founder of Gusta La Puglia told TRAILBLAZING MAGAZINE.
He is of the opinion that that people started to appreciate Gusta la Puglia products “because we offer them a great service and they understand that we only serve top quality food.”
Trailblazing Magazine interviewed Mr. Pastoressa to understand more about his business and what products Albanians like most.
Why choose Albania to start up your business?
My connection with Albania is a long story. My father came to Albania for work in 1995 and once I had grown up, I started joining him during my school holidays so I could spend more time with him. In 2003, he opened a mozzarella factory, which still operates, and when I turned 16, I came to Albania to work during the summer so I could start understanding people and the market itself. When I took my bachelor’s degree, I was sure about my future after attending courses focused on “Food Marketing” in my last year of university. I came back to Albania in 2017 and spent some time familiarising myself with the trends and understanding peoples’ preferences. Moreover, I studied the policies that businesses in the Horeca sector, use for buying products, so I could establish a network used to sell the same products I was going to sell in the shops and even to restaurants and hotels. I noticed that the Italian culture was even more powerful compared to the time I came to work some years before and so I decided to take the final step and started investing time and financial resources to find the right location to open my first shop. At the same time, I started looking for the location for the “I started importing typical warehouse and design the best possible products from my native strategy to build an efficient commercial region, Puglia.” network.
What are some of the products you trade in Albania and what do Albanians love most about them?
I started importing typical products from my native region, Puglia. The idea was to bring top brands, possibly certified as IGP or DOP products. Meanwhile, I started thinking about assembling some sandwiches made with our products, honestly based on some of the ingredients my parents used to send me when I was studying in Milan. Combining ingredients has been a key factor to make people taste and know my products. I think that Albanians understand whether a product is of good quality or not so I tried my best to import high quality products and to create some combinations with those ingredients trying to remain as faithful as I could to Puglia’s tradition. I’m sure that people started to appreciate our products because we offer them a great service and they understand that we only serve top quality food. Based on the experience I’ve had with sandwiches, I think our success is a fine combination of simple tasting recipes that were not seen before in Albania and also the opportunity we give people to recall some holiday experience.
Why should customers visit your shops and not your competitors’? What are your key products that make you stand out?
and a seasoned cheese left to mature for 1 year in a cave near to the factory. Of course, I introduced the product from the mozzarella factory as well since they are very close to the ones produced in Italy. Later, I started introducing some new products every month such as various types of sausages with different aromas and spices or some tasty Caciocavallo seasoned in a cave and coming from the same producer from whom I was buying “Canestrato”.
I think what makes me stand out among my competitors is a combination of different factors. Firstly, I try to create a familiar environment for the clients, training the staff to be confident when proposing what they’re selling and, at the same time, being polite and smiley. Music is a key factor as well. I try to play traditional music from Puglia so customers can better understand where they are and recall the experience, they
My first idea when I decided to open “Gusta la Puglia” was to give people the opportunity to live a whole new experience in tasting food and so it was clear to me since the beginning that I had to bring new, tasty, littleknown products. Therefore, I imported products like “Capocollo di Martina Franca” or the “Canestrato Lucano”, respectively a seasoned cured meat produced from pig neck
have in my shops too. I also try to create the idea for the customers that entering my shops is to live an experience they’ve never had before, using limited edition sandwiches or tasting limited time products. And last but not least are the prices I apply to my products and sandwiches. In fact, my aim is to attract as many people as possible knowing that I am the newest operator in the market. I have to admit, it’s not always easy to maintain this kind of policy but it’s one of the factors that has helped me to develop the business.
What would your ideal “best ever” food lover’s day in Gusta la Puglia look like?
Truth is that during COVID times I haven’t had much opportunity to think about and plan events but for sure I’ve had more time to focus on some projects for the future. I’m developing a laboratory which will supply my shops with prepared dishes like parmigiana, focaccia, panzerotti and what we Apulian call “pizza di patate”. If I have to plan a food lover day in Gusta la Puglia I would like to use these to enhance people’s knowledge of these kind of products and traditions and combining them with the products we use every day. I would prepare a buffetstyle selection board laden with our top quality cheeses and cured meats combined with the fresh cheeses I don’t use in an ordinary day like ricotta and primo sale. Moreover, I’d like to combine some of the recipes that I mentioned before, for example: what if you put parmigiana in the panzerotto or in one sandwich? Sounds tasty, right?
Can you mention some of your signature dishes?
My recipes are very simple as I said before. They are based on the sandwiches I made when I was at university. Our most popular sandwiches at the moment are the ones called “Burrone”, “Medico”, “Signorina” and “Tromba”. I know the names may seem strange but they are based on the names of games played during the time when my grandparents were children, to add a pinch more tradition. The “Burrone” has been my best-seller since the beginning, which is a combination of the “Capocollo di Martina Franca”, dried tomatoes and burrata. Medico is made with Capocollo di Martina Franca, an IGP cheese from a place called Venosa, and fig jam. Signorina is made with Parma DOP ham, smoked scamorza and truffle. Tromba is made with a spicy sausage cut into slices with a knife so it preserves a stronger taste, stracciatella and porcini mushroom cream. My first idea when I decided to open “Gusta la Puglia” was to give people the opportunity to live a whole new experience in tasting food
Please can you share the contacts of your shops and for deliveries?
Rruga Abdi Kazami pranë Rtsh
tel: 0686077516
Rruga Abdyl Frashëri pranë Sheshi Wilson
tel: 0682003533
Rruga Myslim Shyri tek ish Adidas
These are the numbers we use for our private delivery which normally is the fastest one.
We are also available on the Baboon platform where it’s possible to buy sandwiches or all the products that we sell in the shops.
