Before television chefs were heating up America's kitchens with Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or EVOO as it's commonly referred to by one big-name foodie), John Profaci was brokering a deal with a little known Italian business associate to bring the heart-healthy ingredient to millions of people in the Western Hemisphere. What he didn't know at the time was that he would launch Colavita Olive Oil, which would become the top selling oil in the United States, and change the way Americans eat and cook.
Picture it: 1979. In the mountainous region of Campobasso, Italy two men shake hands. One is Enrico Colavita, a local olive oil maker who owns and operates the Colavita Olive Oil plant and crushing facility. The other man is John Profaci, a food broker from New York City on his first trip to Italy. The two have just made a deal to take Colavita's product global. Profaci was to market extra virgin olive oil in North America, while Colavita would produce it and sell it to the rest of the world.
At the time, Profaci's business was selling food products to restaurants, diners and pizzerias, but he says the move was risky on his part. The then-42-year-old Staten Islander was committing to sell a product that was little known to Americans. "Extra Virgin Olive Oil was unknown unless you had relatives sending it to you from Italy," Profaci said. He knew then that it was going to be a trailblazing effort on his part. He admits that, at first glance, the oil was not very appealing, with its dark color, strong scent and flavor and (being an Italian import) expensive price tag.
EVOO's American Debut
Back then, Profaci says, many Americans were not using fresh oil in their cooking, very little oil was sold in markets and that his first test-drive with the product did not go so well. Profaci recalls setting up a table in a Foodtown supermarket in Harrison, New Jersey. He put out pieces of bread for people to dip in the oil. The bait did not get many bites. "Only one person stopped all day to dip in the oil," Profaci said, smiling. "She did not like it."
Discouraged, but not defeated, John Profaci says he refused to give up. Instead, he readjusted his sales strategy. In order to get into American homes, he knew he would have to take his product to where he says most food trends start-in restaurants. Figuring that Italians would be somewhat familiar with olive oil, Profaci packed up a few bottles of Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil and headed to Little Italy in New York City. There, he walked into Il Cortile on Mulberry Street (still there today). Profaci introduced himself and his product to the restaurant's owner who was sitting at a table. The owner called the chef out from the kitchen for a sample. One taste launched a conversation that was the turning point for Colavita's sales. According to Profaci, the chef-speaking in Italian to his boss-said "this is the product I've been looking for. Don't let him leave without buying 5 or 10 cases." Though Profaci was not part of the conversation-unbeknownst to his hosts-he did understand Italian. "I knew I was on the right track and I knew I should adjust my price," Profaci says.
Colavita soon built up a strong fan base in the city, so Profaci decided to take his show on the road. He decided to bring the olive oil to a Fancy Food Show in Chicago in 1980. The product shared the booth with Amazon De Choix, the food distributor Profaci worked for at the time, and the duo was attracting people from all over the event. By the day's end, Profaci had collected 400 leads to follow up on. Many were from Chicago, but some were from various parts of the country-and other countries-which is what he says he needed to really get the word out about the product. Soon, the specialty food stores came knocking, and John Profaci answered their calls, thinking this would be the gateway to supermarkets and mass consumption. "We sold six bottles to one store, a case to another," Profaci recalls. "We just wanted to be on the shelf."
But there's nothing like the power of press to really get the word out about something new. Profaci says the interest in his product spread like wildfire in the early '80s after the New York Times published a front-page article in a Wednesday paper about the health of men in Greece. The report found Greek men had lower incidents of colon cancer, diabetes and other health problems, and that the main ingredient in the Greek diet is extra virgin olive oil. Working from his Todt Hill home that day, Profaci says his phone started ringing off the hook. News agencies had sent out reporters to get more information on this wonder product. After the news hit, specialty stores were increasing their orders; some were buying 20 cases at a time. It wasn't long until the supermarkets realized there was a market out there. Colavita products hit supermarket shelves in 1984. While Profaci thought that would be the end of his relationship with upscale food stores, he was wrong. "To this day, Colavita is still the best selling Extra Virgin Olive Oil in specialty food stores," he says.
Buyer Beware
By the end of the '80s, John Profaci was on top of the world. He had taken a little-known product from Italy and made it an American household staple, and pride in his accomplishments comes from the quality of his product. "We pioneered the product and made a market for everybody. Despite competition, we never deviated from that philosophy of maintaining high quality olive oil," he says. To this day, all of Colavita's products are made in Italy; the company has outgrown its plant in Campobasso and now produces in Rome. Because of the laws of the Italian government, every bottle of Colavita has information on the label indicating its country of origin and other information about its quality. At first, however, olive oil was still a relatively new product and wasn't regulated by the United States' Federal Department of Agriculture. As the market grew, Profaci says more brands started hitting the shelves, including some lesser quality ones. He was bothered by the fact that some cheaper oils were being advertised as "Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil" when, in fact the products were coming from other countries. He also says some of those oils were not made from pressed olives. Rather, they came from pulp of already pressed olives. Profaci says authentic extra virgin olive oil comes from the first press of the olives and meets certain standards of color, taste and smell.
"There were a lot of people in this industry who were cheating," he says. "It was unethical and illegal. I didn't want people to think I was price gauging." To keep the imposter oils from flooding the market and reflecting negatively on his own product, Profaci pushed other olive oil companies to help form the North American Olive Oil Association. The group's mission is to supply North American consumers with high quality products and to uphold certain standards within the industry. The Association also educates people about the health benefits of using Extra Virgin Olive Oil as opposed to other fats.
A Lasting Legacy
In April, John Profaci will be 72 years old. The past 30 of those years has been spent selling a product that has made a tremendous impact on the culinary world. Profaci even credits his own good health to extra virgin olive oil, saying there's rarely a use for butter in his diet. His work has not gone unnoticed. Twelve years ago, Profaci was invited to have lunch at the Culinary Institute of America, which he refers to as the Vatican of the culinary world. Over the meal, school officials talked about developing a center for Italian food and wine. The Institute wanted to name the new center at the Hyde Park campus after Colavita. Profaci left the meeting saying he would think it over, but the decision had already been made. "It's a no brainer," he told his son Joe on the drive home. As soon as they returned to New Jersey, Profaci called the school to say he was in. With a $2 million donation from Colavita USA, the Tuscan villa style building was on its way up. The Colavita Center for Italian Food and Wine was officially dedicated on May 10th, 2001. The center features a cooking school, cultural center and a restaurant (Ristorante Caterina de' Medici) which has won numerous honors for its outstanding, cutting-edge cuisine. After receiving an honorary Degree of Human Letters in 2002, this year the CIA will also honor John Profaci by inducting him into their Culinary Hall of Fame. "I'm gong to be in some good company," Profaci said. "I'm very excited."
Think you've never had Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil? Do you prefer Rachael Ray's brand of EVOO? How about Tony Tantillo's? Well, behind those labels is 100% pure Italian olive oil that comes from the Colavita plant! These high-end clients could put their faces on any oil, but they chose Colavita. Not just anyone can do the same; Profaci says his private label business is a very exclusive club.
When he's not cutting business deals with great culinarians, he's back home on Staten Island, living in the same house his kids grew up in. He also gives back to his community. He and his wife Connie Profaci (a local real estate agent whom he lovingly refers to as "Connie Trump") have had a hand in the March of Dimes Gourmet Gala, and Profaci and his son John have also formed a foundation to donate bicycles to children who lost parents on 9/11.
Today, Colavita USA is based out of Linden, New Jersey. The company currently operates a warehouse on Staten Island, but will soon consolidate its assets and employees and be solely based out of New Jersey. John Profaci runs the company with his four sons, who all have a hand in operating the business. Last year the company grossed more than $200 million-a far cry from the company's 1980 earnings of $250,000-and Profaci says the company continues to grow because of reliability. "They trust in us," Profaci says about his customers. "[Our product] is true. It's honest. It's always the same."
