A native of Paris, Geneviève Fabre was born into a family of fruit and vegetable wholesalers. She started work after gaining her college diploma, and took over from her mother as head of the company in 1962, at the age of 25 years. …

"In those days, fruits and vegetables were mainly grown in France and sales could be divided into two distinct segments: vegetables in winter, fruits in summer… I came to Rungis in 1969 with my husband André Fabre, and have stayed at the same location ever since. I handled the cash desk and accounting while he handled sales. Our three children eventually joined us at the company. Didier (41 years old) arrived in 1985 and is in charge of sales and procurements. Lionel (38 years old) joined the company in 1990 and is in charge of finance and accounting. Sophie, the eldest, joined in 2000 and supervises the administrative and secretarial side of the business. Together with our three employees, we form a team of seven; my husband André retired in 2005. Over five years ago we decided to refocus our business on the fruits sector; our flagship products are: - smooth-skinned Cayenne pineapples, imported directly from Cameroon and Benin, - strawberries, raspberries and cherries, - grapes - muscat from Ventoux and chasselas from Moissac, - Kent mangoes (Brazil and Peru), - 'wrinkle-skinned' melons, grown by our own certified producers and distributed under our own brand name 'Livre d’Or'.

We record annual sales of 850 tonnes of pineapples, 200 tonnes of mangoes, 15 tonnes of raspberries, 150 tonnes of strawberries (gariguette from Corrèze and Mara des bois from the Loiret), and our range counts some 260 product references. Our guiding principle has always been to supply best quality fruits at the best quality/price ratio. We therefore visit production sites ourselves to be sure of selecting the best products and suppliers. It is important to stay true to core values: professionalism, enthusiasm for the products, respect for the customer, integrity and honesty. Our customer base breaks down as retailers (stores and markets) 70%, wholesalers outside Paris (20%), major restaurateurs (5%), and supermarkets and hypermarkets (5%). We decided not to offer a delivery service. As a strategic site known the world over for having the best range of food products on offer, Rungis must continue its work while maintaining its high level of professionalism…".