Hovsep Khachatryan along with his family started a small family business in 2006. In that period it was considered a serious investment with a large amount of risks and difficulties. However, this was a risk that ended up paying off for the Khachatryan as their rose-hip juice production is famous among the population of Vayots Dzor and tourists who pay a visit to the region.
Recently, Hovsep’s family has started to also produce natural juices from apples, cherries, pears, and raspberries. Starting by only producing small volumes at first. For each variety they made, they experimented with a wide range of ingredients in order to guarantee the best flavor. After a few not so very successful experiments, they turned to their mother for advice and that is when they were able to find the perfect balance with the new ingredience. When we asked what the new ingredience were, we were all homemade but that they were also a family secret. When they were finally ready to take thier new products to the market, they found out that there was indeed a high demand for their products.
Even with a high demand with the products there is still a need to make additional investment in order to increase the volume of the production. Hovsep met with Syunik NGO and presented his idea and a strong business plan.
Since the Khachatryan business is also an NGO, it is very important for them to know whose store they are buying their raw materials from and what is needed for production. Equally as important is how their business will support and improve the livelihood of local farmers.
We are now storing second grade fruit consumption from over 20 farmers in our region, this has proven to be the most difficult for farmers. They have the produce, but the struggle is marketing where to sell their produce. This is where we come in as steady income.
In general we are storing produce only from Vayots Dzor region, with the exception of our cherry produce which we are receiving from the Gegharkunik region. With the support of Syunik NGO they have helped us with sale of our production and involvement. They have also supported us by introducing us to various trainings, organizational experiences and cross visits.
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