Suggestions for things to sell in a deli?

[Singasongaday]

What would you like to find for sale in a deli? Looking for ideas and suggestions please.

Consider the veggies. And not like ‘oh here’s a cheese sandwich’ - proper good exciting salads, bagels, sandwiches etc. I would love a deli who really thought about it and made it exciting!

Take a trip to your local farmers and/or covered market if you have one, places like Ludlow will probably be a good inspiration as well. Local produce, some big name veggie and vegan, nice oils and chutney, good organic chocolate (Spanish is the favourite in this house, nothing else comes close, we first found that in Ludlow), good artisan cheeses and dairy, interesting crackers (found some utterly fabulous ones in Derbyshire that the shop recommend we s, sublime with the Black Bomber cheese...) It really does depend on your market though, who shops in your town?

I'll start you off with our demographic, middle aged couple, no school age kids, squeezed a bit due to cost of living but can still afford occasional weekend or day trips to naice places, enjoy good food and would rather have a small amount of good food than disastrously overstuffed plates of tasteless pasta ( yes, Thropton pub, we're looking at you....)

Really nice baked cheesecake.

Also really good pate.

Our local deli has a fresh fish counter, sells sourdough supplied by the local sourdough experts, fresh pesto, trout pate, and anything that is posh and fresh and comes in a pot, fresh pastas etc. Has a v expansive fruit and veg stall outside and by the till sells expensive hot chocolate/teas/coffees, plus also has a cafe and in the summer a retracting window to sell posh local ice cream.

See emphasis on the word posh throughout 😁

Proper homemade chunky coleslaw, artisan breads and all the cheese

One near me sells sourdough granola. Sooooo yummy and I've never seen anything similar in the supermarket.

I want to go to this deli

Stuff I can't buy at every supermarket in town.

Good takeaway lunch menu (amazing bagels/paninis etc, but done even better than I can do at home.

Local produce.

Grazing platters to order.

This sounds divine

Posh Scotch eggs (different flavours)
Posh sausage rolls
Cheeses
Fancy salads sold by the tub with option to mix
Naice ham (obvs)
Chutneys
Posh quiches / tarts by the slice
Pies
Olives - different varieties / flavours
Fancy crackers
Coffee (whole bean and ground)
Nice chocolate
Maybe some nice cakes - brownies etc

Also nicely packaged stuff that people can buy as gifts.

Great foodie presents like posh oils and best ever Cheesey biscuits

A smattering of chi chi local produce. So if you're coastal, vacuum packed smoked fish from a local smokery. Local eggs too since the supply issues in supermarkets often lead to disappointment. Local honey - aways a winner, and it has long shelf life. Local charcuterie if there's a local pig farmer who does that kind of thing.
Have a wander round some local farmers markets and see what looks excellent and sells well, and approach the producers
Ummm.... fancy Italian nougat type things

Love BuddhaatSea’s ideas. Other ideas: maybe some small baskets people can fill with selection for personalised gift hampers eg homemade brownies and specialist tea; scones, clotted cream, jam and tea; cheese scones, chutney and unusual cheeses; parma ham, melon and ciabatta etc. great consumable gifts for people that don’t want clutter! Good luck and may your business prosper this year.

What are your best sellers currently?

Have you tried asking your most regular customers what they would like to see?

E.g. I have a particular love of both Snowdonia cheese's whisky infused cheddar and also of picos de Europa. If I live next door to your deli then that's great for you - if the person who comes in most often can't resist a really good Cornish yarg then that might be better.

Non perishables are a safer bet in expansion terms because you don't have to sell them immediately.

Where are you based? Depending on this and what's around you, etc you could sell freshly made sandwiches, picnic boxes, ready made salads, meals to reheat at home. It all depends on your clientele. Speak to local producers and stock their products too.

Deep quiches
Vegetarian options that aren't always also vegan
Pasta salad
Really good baby potato salad
All the cheeses
Good hummus esp if with nice toppings

Veg you can't always get in yer bog standard supermarket - globe artichokes, fancy purple carrots and all that

Assorted salads with interesting ingredients, Lebanese salads, stuffed vine leaves.. in fact other stuffed veg as well (tried a lovely smoked aubergine and goats cheese thing the other day which nearly killed me due to it also being stuffed with Walnuts),
Cheese.....lots of lovely cheeses
More cheese
Spreads and dips
Nice crackers, breads, rolls etc
Pickles/chutney
Good chocolates
Arabic/Turkish coffee
Really fresh dates
Black ink anything.....risotto/pasta etc
Gnocchi... spinach/pumpkin/sweet potato

I'll stop now....feeling hungry

We currently sell lots of homemade sausage rolls, pork pies and cooked meats. Our customers are predominantly aged 50 - 85. I would like to increase our appeal to a wider demographic but don’t want to alienate our current customers who are lovely.

Fancy oils: truffle, pumpkin, walnut, infused oils with garlic, chillies etc.
Imported biscuits and crackers and delicacies like panforte
Good quality cheeses and olives, dried hams and charcuterie

Nice bread
nice crackers
Nice cheeses
slices meats
Homemade quiches
Homemade sausage rolls
various tapas type dishes
selection of olives, sundried tomatoes etc.
Mr Vikki’s sweet chilli jam
posh crisps
posh nuts
nice homemade sandwich fillings

The one near me does pizza box platters. So you go in on a Friday night and there's a pizza box (lived with parchment) with meats, cheeses, maybe relish or chutney. You can ask for cornichons and small pickled onions. Genius idea.

You can get personal pizza size or big.

Also want to say, I'm not remotely over fussy about cleanliness, but I too cannot stand food that is left out in the open. I would far rather it was all under a cover or in a display type unit!