Strictly no waste: what it takes to be the No.1 importer of Southeast Asian foods?

In an unassuming house in Prague's Libuš district, Veggie Asian Food operates. The largest European importer of food, fruits, and spices from Southeast Asia has achieved incredible feats over its existence. They negotiated with the Thai government for priority access to local farmers' products, established their own logistics center at Bangkok Airport, and became the leading Central European partner of the renowned airline Emirates, regularly filling a significant portion of their cargo holds. They also maintain their own customs facilities at Prague's Ruzyne Airport and deliver fresh produce within hours of arrival from distant regions to customers not only in the Czech Republic and Slovakia but also in Germany, the Netherlands, and France.

But above all, they handle hundreds of small operational tasks every day. Ordering in the middle of the night, managing cargo space capacity, ensuring freshness and impeccable quality of all foods, and improving the technology of refrigerated transport boxes. You might wonder how many people such a company employs? In reality, there are only twenty-eight – efficiency is ensured by a well-structured system and, above all, extreme diligence.

The company is led by a petite woman, the cheerful but firm Hoang Yen Le, affectionately known as Jenka within the company. Having lived in Prague since eighth grade, she speaks perfect Czech. She says, "We operate in a business where mistakes are not forgiven. If we deliver the wrong food once, not only will that customer never buy from us again, but it could damage our reputation. That's why sometimes we manage to go below our costs to keep our word. Today, this approach pays off as we have been the market leader for the past two years and are the only ones capable of always delivering everything we promise," she explains the backstage of a demanding market where time is measured in minutes. To succeed, Veggie Asian Food must maintain extraordinary strictness throughout the company. Tardiness or unprofessionalism are not tolerated.

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"But that by no means suggests that Kien is less stringent with us. Quite the contrary. Being exceptionally technically skilled and hardworking, he can code or modify many things himself. He also has very clear ideas about what needs to be changed in the system," Jakub Míša smiles. The fact that the collaboration is working very well is evidenced by the fact that at Veggie, they currently plan to expand the system to cover fresh fruits and also localize it into Thai, Vietnamese, and other languages.

"Of course, this is a challenge for all of us. On the other hand, it's also a reference that has a great opportunity to propel us forward. When you see everyone at Veggie Asian Food constantly working and thinking about how to advance their own business, you want to be a partner in that journey. It's an exciting environment where things change from hour to hour – and at the same time, it's the ultimate test of flexibility in corporate processes in global market," Jakub Míša concludes.