Garcimar, a family business specialized in the marketing of fish and seafood, meat, fruit and pre-cooked products, has acquired a majority stake in Sensibilitat Gastronòmica, owner of the GranBlau brand, a leader in the service and distribution of fresh fish and seafood for catering. high-end in Barcelona and the Balearic Islands.
The operation, in which Garcimar has invested around one and a half million euros, will help the wholesaler grow in the sale of fresh fish and seafood, while GranBlau will gain muscle and logistics to expand its distribution. “We have long wanted to grow in our main business, which is fish marketing; “We are more specialized in frozen and mid-range fish, and now we will enter premium catering,” says Tresserras. Based in Mercabarna, both companies will act independently, maintaining their entity and billing separately. Garcimar expects to earn 75 million euros this year, while GranBlau’s sales amount to around twelve million euros.
Núria Gustems, founder of Sensibilitat Gastronòmica, will continue in her position as general director. “We work with wild fish and we source our supplies from the best markets in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, with artisanal handling of the product,” she explains. The company serves several Michelin-starred restaurants in the city.
“It has been a natural alliance,” reflects Tresserras. The manager explains that the wholesale fish and seafood sector is in the process of concentration. “There is a great atomization and the tendency is to add synergies,” he adds. Garcimar, in the hands of the fourth generation of the family – it was founded in 1931 in the fishing neighborhood of El Serrallo, in Tarragona – has eight branches spread throughout Spain and more than 130 bi-temperature routes. GranBlau will be able to take advantage of this network to reach more customers.
With 260 workers, 52% of its business comes from organized catering, another 45% from independent clients (hotels and restaurants), while the remaining 3% is in supermarkets. In total, they offer 1,500 references of frozen products from different families. Coincidences of fate, GranBlau was also born in El Serrallo by Gustems’ grandfather, who in his day also worked for Garcimar. “We were predestined.”
