News Review
Ali Baba Casts a Spell on Carlisle!
Ali Baba has weaved a magic spell on Carlisle, with more than half the town’s independent fast food outlets depending on it, the Ali Baba Halal American-style range has become the biggest selling burger in the Cumbrian city.
Monitoring these sales is Omer Kasmaz, managing director of nine years old fast food wholesaler, Best Frozen Foods.
Seven years ago he conducted customer taste tests between his then current offer, the Paragon range and others on the market.
“Ali Baba is a very good burger. The customers chose it because they liked it and nobody wants to change to a cheaper burger,” he said.
One such customer is Zinhi Djelal and he has a battle on his hands. His Top Shop outlet in the city centre is surrounded by a fish and chips shop, two pizza outlets, an Italian, a Mexican, an Indian, a Thai, a bakery, a sandwich shop and three hotels and five bars serving food, not to mention two cafes on the station.
Opening for 12 hours plus from 3 p.m. every day (Carlisle has a vibrant night life) he sells more than 700 burgers a week in winter, significantly less than the spring to autumn period when tourists swell the takings. The offer is one, two or three burgers, which can be flavoured and are served with salad and chips.
His Top Shop has been a family business for twenty years and he was first touched by Ali Baba’s magic five years ago.
“The customers like it and come back for more. There’s minimum shrinkage, it’s easy to griddle and it’s a good consistent burger,” he said.
Mr. Djelal has five members of staff who share his Turkish Cypriot roots. Mr. Kasmaz enjoys similar family bonds, with his wife, son, two daughters and a brother on the team at Best Frozen Foods.
With five vans, they offer frozen, chilled and dry goods next-day deliveries from a base in Annan, Dumfriesshire to the Carlisle-Glasgow-Edinburgh triangle and are expanding South of Carlisle through Cumbria.
Mr. Kasmaz moved to the area from Turkey 18 years ago, opening a kebab shop in Longtown and, with a partner, built a chain of four before he switched to food wholesaling.
“With my background I know what fast food customers need. They want a good burger that’s consistent, delivers a profit and guarantees return business. Ali Baba does all that,” he added.
