In short, if you want to practice healthy living by eating and drinking plant-based products, as a vegetarian, you need to put Fruity Web on your regular list of visiting food places in Anguilla.
The owner, Wilbert Lawrence, is being assisted by his wife, Monique, with the running of the vegetable shop and cookery. The newly-built and colourful facility is conveniently and conspicuously located on The Quarter main road, about 20 feet from where Wilbert operated 13 years ago.
In expanding his business, he has leased land on the opposite side of the road, and used his carpentry talent to construct a purposeful, neat and attractive building. There is now adequate space for displaying his vegetables; a kitchen and serving area; an outdoor dining area, complete with umbrellas; as well as a vehicle parking area. He has also smartly incorporated a nearby existing and ageing small building as part of his operations with a connecting concrete walkway.
Wilbert, who is originally from St Lucia, has been in Anguilla for 22 years and holds belongership status. He and his wife reside just off the road in the Chalvilles area. It is in that locality where he was first known as a street vendor of fruits and plants before he moved to The Quarter. But, prior to that, he was a builder and served in that trade during his first years in Anguilla.
“Basically, I am a tradesman – a carpenter. My uncle brought me to Anguilla to work at Cassablanca – the renovation of a hotel which used to be Merrywing,” he recalled. When I came to Anguilla, I loved it. I met some nice people who encouraged me to stay, and up today, we are the same friends as it was from the beginning.”
He was asked how he switched to doing business in agricultural products. “I got into that basically because I am a St Lucian, and we trade in a lot of fruits and vegetables,” he replied. “I was semi-veggie at that time, but now I am a full vegetarian. I used to buy lots of mangoes in Anguilla, but the prices were so high that I decided to buy them by the cases [from outside the island] so I would get some for myself to eat and to sell some. So I deal with the mangoes, I deal with the bananas, I deal with the oranges because these are the fruits I love a lot; and I realise this business works.”
The very passionate fruit and vegetable lover continued: “Right now I do a Caribbean produce service. I get supplies from the Dominican Republic, St Vincent, St Lucia and Dominica. My main order arrives in Anguilla on a Monday, but we do have some imports on Wednesdays and Fridays also. When the business is very fast, we do two orders weekly. I sell to some people and most of the imports are to retail in my shop. We use some of the fruits and vegetables for our smoothies, veggie meals – like our veggie pastas, our veggie soups or, as some people say, ‘ital’ soups.”
Wilbert spoke about the recent transfer of his business operations. “I decided to come over on this side because I realise it is a good spot. Over there I wasn’t doing any cooking because it was too small. When I came on this side, I decided to do a little cooking and to have more smoothies, healthy snacks and healthy foods. I have about four of my customers deceased now because of not eating healthy, so I decided I am going to try a healthy Fruity Web.”
Why the name ‘Fruity Web’? “It was the name I got from a Customs Officer,” he explained. “My first order from Anguilla was from a company named ‘Fruitsy Food’ in St Lucia. When I reached to the Customs, she, the Customs Officer, did all my documents under the name of ‘Fruity Web’ so when I read it, I said Oh this is a lovely name. I am going to use it to name my business right away ‘Fruity Web’”.
Since its transfer, Wilbert’s business has significantly increased. “I am seeing a 75 percent increase,” he disclosed. “It is a surprise to me because I was expecting to see a few persons, but I am getting about 30 people like every two or three hours. The majority of them come for different smoothies …I am operating on leased land – five years by five years. That is every five years we will renew our contract. I didn’t take me long to get this building. In the first instance, as I told you, I am a carpenter by trade. Here, we have a vegetarian operation. We do veggie pastas, veggie burgers, veggie dogs, smoothies and juices as well as vegetable and fruit plates – for example – if you need pineapple, melons cut up.”
He offered this advice to all interested persons: “When you eat plant-based products, you go back to Genesis where the Bible tells you ‘This I give unto you as meat’ – the seeds, the grains, the leaves and so on. It is about 30 years I don’t eat any flesh and my size [210 pounds] will show you can be a vegetarian. You just have to eat right – no meat, no chicken, no fish – just plant-based foods and drinks.”
