daves Food Stores build on a family legacy to serve local communities

David Grech comes from a long line of supermarket entrepreneurs. His grandfather, Carmelo, opened Smart Supermarket in 1981 on the site of the family’s former textile factory; his father, Victor – an avid train enthusiast – was the co-founder of PAVI in Qormi. You could say that the provision of food, household essentials and daily staples runs in the Grech blood.

“I didn’t initially intend to get into my family’s line of work,” smiles the younger Mr Grech, whose name graces 30 grocery stores across the island. The founder of daves Food Stores started his career running his own wedding souvenir business, later transitioning into perfumeries. “My father is one of 11 brothers and sisters, so I knew that Smart was in good hands, although I had promised him that if he ever decided to leave and set up on his own, I would join him.”

Victor did, and went on to co-found PAVI in 2006. “I had to keep my word, and I spent nine years there. But when my father opted to sell out, I then decided to create something new, in a different niche and as a separate venture,” David recalls.

As a result of this impetus, David went on to open his first daves in Żurrieq in 2013. Today, the chain employs 400 people, across 20 nationalities, with 35 of these based at the head office, and 20 at the company’s Mrieħel factory. Over the past three years, the business has seen rapid growth, with annual footfall increasing to between seven and eight million customers from four million. Plans are also in place to open five more stores in the coming months, taking the total to 35 outlets.

“My goals haven’t actually changed much over the years. I wanted to open smaller stores within Malta’s villages and towns since I noticed that the local grocery store was slowly disappearing. I thought I would give it new life and create these mini-markets, so that our customer is only ever within a 10-minute walk from any outlet to cater to their day-to-day needs,” David states.

From the beginning, Victor was an enthusiastic supporter of the initiative. “I believed in what David was planning to do; I had wanted to do something similar in my earlier years since I had realised that, by having just one larger store, it was sometimes difficult to reach different parts of the island.”

This knowledge came from years of data accrued from running supermarkets, he continues: “At one point, I had launched a loyalty card, and through that, I could see that most people came from the supermarket’s surrounding areas. So, it makes sense to open smaller stores spread across the country if you want to attract more clientele,” Victor explains.

These cumulative years of experience have translated into a pragmatic and solution-driven strategy to the company’s offering. “It’s about providing a service and making it accessible,” David adds. To this end, daves stores are open 24/7 and the company launched an App to facilitate the distribution of items to households from each of its 30 stores. “Two years ago, we decided to migrate from our website, and invest in an application to offer multi-point delivery. These initiatives have, no doubt, helped to create customer confidence in our brand,” the founder attests.

In so doing, daves has also retained a personal connection with the communities to which it serves. “One of the ways we’ve maintained a strong relationship to our customers is by offering a five per cent discount to people over 60,” David says.

Simultaneously, the business has preserved ties with local suppliers. “Being closer to our customers also means ensuring the availability of those items they need, and that they are used to. For instance, we have partnered with the bakery Paul ta’ Kalċ in Qormi, and we deliver bread across all our stores twice a day, at 4am and in the early afternoon.”

Crucially, the priority is to “offer our customers products of good value and quality,” David insists. To achieve this, daves also controls the production of in-house consumables. “We offer 600-daves branded items, developed across four separate divisions within our factory,” the CEO explains. An on-site kitchen makes dough staples, such as pizzas, pies and pastizzi; a second kitchen is focused on the creation of sweet delicacies; a third is dedicated to the production of ready-made meals; and a fourth is focused on checking, testing and packaging edible fare, such as fruits, seeds, nuts and sweets.

“We’ve also expanded into new markets – and this is something we’re keen on consolidating over the next year or so,” he continues. “In other words, we monitor the FMCG market for any gaps and we meet the demand by, for instance, importing niche products. We have started to supply dates with different flavours, and we’re also importing distilled non-alcoholic drinks, such as gin and tonic – an initiative which my daughter has helped to spearhead,” he says.  

The operation behind daves is, notably, a multi-generational machine. David’s son, Daniel, is acting C.O.O. and heads up infrastructure deployment, while his daughter, Amber, is Head of Procurement. “Although this is a family company – with Daniel and Amber in contact with me 24-hours a day – we’re giving a service to the company, so if we need to make a decision, it’s a business decision. We have three external professionals on the firm’s board, and, in the future, when my children take over, they will be answerable to that board,” David insists.

Nonetheless, Victor and David also meet every morning to discuss the day-to-day challenges of the business, as well as any future plans. “I am very open with David,” the elder Mr Grech says, stressing that such communication allows for the inheritance of shared business values. “This sector is not built only on what prices you offer, but it is founded on the quality of the service. You can buy a can of tuna from many places, but what’s your unique proposition? It’s the quality of the shop, the way the staff greet you, and the warmth you receive when you enter the store,” Victor notes.

This is not to say that building the business has not come without its challenges. “The biggest issue has been finding the right human resources; recruiting both skilled and professional people – staff who have the company to heart and who transmit the values of the business – is very hard,” David asserts. Victor concurs, adding that he has seen employee loyalty fade over the decades he has been in the business. “I remember a time when someone would work with you for 30 or 40 years! Today, that’s not the case,” Victor attests.

Looking ahead, David is intent on passing on the values of trust, consistency and value to the next generation of company leaders. “I always tell my kids, I’m preparing you to take decisions for the next 10 years of the company. We are unique, and we need to keep going on our own steam. We can always adjust the sales, but being nimble, and flexible is what will see us through,” David highlights, concluding.