Aromatic extra virgin olive oil, honey, olives, pickles, truffles, snails, mushroom, trachanas, legumes, soups, sauces, cured meats, salted fish, cheese, sesame, chocolate, jam, Greek delights, herbal teas, herbs, spices, wine. At Yoleni’s online store – which was named after the 4 year old daughter of one of the founders – more than 1,500 products are waiting patiently on the shelves, packaged into parcels or presentable gift baskets to travel to dozens of locations in more than 21 European Union countries, the United States, Canada and Latin America.

“Yoleni’s wants to be a pillar of exports of traditional Greek food around the world,” says the company’s marketing manager Yiannis Georgiadis. Currently their clientele numbers more than 7,000 customers in Greece and Europe – split 60% and 40% respectively – who receive their order within 16-36 hours. Corporate customers are also a strong presence with their wholesale orders of gift baskets.

At the company site, www.yolenis.com, visitors can learn about the products, how they were produced and the history of the producer before adding the product to their shopping basket. The company wants shopping at the store to be an experience for existing and prospective customers. They add that as a family operation, they want to exude tradition and Greek character and inspire the public to trust them. The sense of family is pervasive at the company, where 15 staff members handle orders, employed in the accounting department, marketing, distribution and management.

Overseas, Yoleni’s is particularly popular in Britain, mainly in London and Germany, Finland and Ireland. The most popular overseas products are olive oil, pasta, honey and refrigerated products, namely sausages, salted products and cheese.

In June 2015 the Yoleni’s team was honored with the Greek Entrepreneurship Award and expanded to the American market where it was warmly received by fans of Greek products across the Atlantic. The company’s immediate plan in the not too distant future is the creation of physical outlets in the US and Greece, which will pay homage to traditional Greek grocery stores.

* Originally published in Kathimerini’s K magazine