Primis Imports

About

On today's episode, I sit down with Damian Primis, founder of Primis Imports, a company that brings extra virgin olive oil and other Mediterranean pantry goods to the U.S.

Damian is a Juilliard-trained bassoonist who started the business when the pandemic put live performances on hold. What began as a single shipment of olive oil, which he distributed mostly to friends and fellow musicians, has grown into a brand sold in hundreds of stores across the country.

In this conversation, we get into what it took to turn that side project into a real importing business, from working with freight forwarders and insuring every shipment to working around the annual olive harvest.

Lastly, we discuss how his branding opened doors with retailers, why olive oil, which is expensive to produce and hard to mark up, leaves so little room for error, and why, as he expands into more major retail, keeping up with demand without sacrificing quality becomes a real challenge.

I learned a lot during my conversation with Damian, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

This episode is brought to you in part by Rho, a paid partner of the show. Rho is the modern banking platform built for the AI era. Startups and growth-stage companies can open accounts in minutes, issue cards, manage expenses, pay bills, and close the books, all in one connected platform, backed by real human support that founders love. Right now, qualified Unit Economics listeners can get $100 when they open and fund an account at uepod.com/rho. Terms apply.