Today we’d like to introduce you to Desiree Pardo Morales.
Desiree, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I have been consumed with produce since I can remember. Growing up in a Cuban-American household, our kitchen was always filled with fresh avocados, mangos, yucca, and other fruits and roots that to this day I have trouble pronouncing yet are so familiar. My family has always been connected to the land, in fact, my father is a produce executive himself and with him, I learned the value of hard work, passion for what you do, and adaptability. One of my first memories was in the mountains of Ecuador, holding my Dad’s hand as I saw a pack of mules with large sacks draped over their sides, guided down a mountain by a farmer. They were carrying a load of a local root, malanga, covered in fresh dirt. The proud farmer approached us and said, “it doesn’t get any fresher than this!” as he then broke the root in half with a crisp snap. My Dad smiled, examined the freshness, and passed it to me.
At the time, I had no idea what this strange root was, but seeing my father light up and how proud the farmer was, I knew it had to be something special. I spent my summers with my father at the office working in the warehouse when we weren’t traveling abroad to the generational family farms. These farmers became family friends and who we source our tropical and exotic fruits and roots from to this day. As an adult, after I graduated college at University of Miami and then completed my International MBA through FIU at IE Business School in Madrid, Spain, it was a natural transition to then continue working and growing the family business. Traveling the U.S., I observed the opportunity for on-demand access to fresh tropical and exotic fruits that were not easily found locally. I kept hearing, “they don’t sell that fruit where we are”. One day at a food convention, a buyer’s wife was yearning for our Desbry Tropical Avocado or the exotic fruits like mangosteen and rambutan, but it just was not easily accessible. So, I thought, if we have the fresh produce, why can’t we deliver it right to their door? And at that moment, Tropical Fruit Box and our freshness guarantee was born.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I believe that all success comes with challenges and learnings. It’s part of what helps you improve and fine-tune your product or service. And just when you think you have it all figured out, it changes, and you have to be ready to adapt. Working in agriculture, we are constantly adapting to a variety of environmental factors. With the pandemic, we have experienced first-hand the supply chain disruption, transit issues, and foodservice challenges with meals away from home becoming reduced or non-existent. There were even produce shortages at the grocery level.
I always say that working in produce means being spontaneous. With produce being perishable, everything has to move quickly, and that means adapting swiftly to external factors. Even with those obstacles, we are excited to be on track to grow our sales 500% this year. We knew there was a need and filled a customer demand while aligning with the broader e-commerce trends in just about every category, including food. It has been so fulfilling to maintain and grow relationships with the farmer families, work and be inspired by some of the greatest chefs, and to bring tropical and exotic fruits from all over the world, almost literally from tree to table.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Tropical Fruit Box procures fresh tropical and exotic fruits from all over the world and delivers them directly to customers’ doors. We are the online home delivery resource for exquisite and rare fruits and roots not easily found locally. We source from local family farms in the fertile soils of mostly Florida, California, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Fruit lovers can choose from single fruit boxes or curated variety boxes with freshness guaranteed delivery anywhere in the continental U.S. Recently, we partnered with Fresh Del Monte to sell the new Pinkglow™ pink pineapple. Growing up around produce all my life, I can say this crown jewel is truly a one-of-a-kind taste experience with a myriad of ways to pair!
As a minority-owned small business, we are thrilled to be selected by a global company to be one of their exclusive online partners. It completely aligns with Tropical Fruit Box and our mission to deliver fresh tropical and exotic fruits that cannot be found at a local grocery store. We are also very proud of our Desbry Tropical Avocado. It is the foundation of our family business, WP Produce. The intensely creamy Desbry Tropical Avocado is harvested in the higher altitude hills of Dominican Republic— second-largest global grower of avocados after Mexico known for its Hass— is slightly sweeter and four times the size! Its naturally slower oxidation, unique texture, firmness, taste and recipe applications offer a wide selection of consumer usage options. All Tropical Fruit Box orders are paired with fruit reference cards and authentic food and drink recipes, many curated by Chef collaborators. Our tropical and exotic fruits and roots are guaranteed fresh and ship for free about one week from order date. Expedited shipping is also available.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I am inspired by the book Diet for a Small Planet by Francis Moore Lappé. It was published back in 1972 and truly revolutionized how we eat, even today. I admire how she outlines simple rules for a healthy diet and offers hundreds of fruit and vegetable-based recipes that offer sound nutrition. I am also a big fan of The School of Greatness Podcast, filled with rich anecdotes and inspiring stories on positive thinking. As a mom of three young children, multitasking is top priority. Starting my day very early, my “me time” includes exercise while listening to successes in other industries to always keep an open mind.
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@tropicalfruitbox.com
- Website: https://tropicalfruitbox.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tropicalfruitboxusa/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tropicalfruitbox
Image Credits
Tropical Fruit Box Fresh Del Monte for the last photo/Pinkglow™ pink pineappale
