46 • September | October 2026 • abasto.com • Continuation of page 46 • FOOD INDUSTRY What Customers Can’t Find Anywhere Else Benítez describes those early years as “a journey into the unexpected.” Each sto- re opening brought a new surprise about what customers were really looking for. The answers came quickly. Seventy-ei- ght percent of customers began frequen- ting Fresco for its fresh produce, including rare fruits such as pitahaya and Cuban lo- quat. The fish, purchased directly at the docks, reaches the counters the same day it’s unloaded from the boat. But what moved Benítez the most was something else. “At the end of the day, your language is the most beautiful song you can ever hear in your life,” he says, re- calling what customers told him over and over again: that they wanted to be spoken to in their own language, that they wanted their name to be known, and that their butcher should be a real person—not just an anonymous counter clerk. That idea—the customer first, always— became the guiding principle behind every decision. Fresco doesn’t sign fixed contracts with suppliers: it buys the freshest produce available and offers, according to Benítez, the best price—not necessarily the lowest. From Corporate Ownership to Family-Run Operation In 2024, Southeastern Grocers, then the chain’s parent company, sold Fresco to the private investment group Fresco Re- tail Group, based in Coral Gables. Benítez believes that decision still weighs on the former owners: they never imagined the growth that would follow. The new company arrived with renewed energy. It invests in the stores, refreshes the brand, and, according to Benítez, genuinely cares about the customer and the team. The private ownership structure also simplified day-to-day operations: there’s no longer a need to wade through endless bureaucracy to get an idea approved. All it takes is presenting it to a small, close-knit board of directors. Customers Finally Understood the Name. The change from Fresco y Más to Fresco Su- permarket wasn’t a whim. Many customers didn’t know what kind of business Fresco y Más was because the name—though nice— didn’t convey anything: it didn’t suggest a supermarket, a store, or a market. Market research confirmed what the team suspected. The solution came from the same source as always: the customer. The word “supermarket” cleared up the confusion and, for Benítez, improved the way people understand Fresco. What’s Next: More Technology, the Same Passion With 26 stores and a decade of learning under its belt, Fresco is looking ahead. Benítez hints at a major investment in loyalty programs, so- cial media, e-commerce, and a revamped mo- bile app. He prefers to keep the details a surpri- se, but promises new features always designed to make customers’ lives easier. Even so, he insists that technology isn’t the real driving force behind Fresco. It’s the people: from the CEO down to the per- son who collects shopping carts in the par- king lot. “When you have associates who are passionate about what they do, there’s no limit,” he says. Ten years after that first closing as Winn-Dixie, Fresco Supermarkets is no longer just a supermarket: for many of its customers, it’s a little piece of home. And if there’s one thing Sergio Benítez is cer- tain of, it’s that the best part of this story is yet to be written.