Jong's Produce, Sebastian, Florida
Jong's Produce
How rare is it to be a family business for over 34 years?
Norma and I have been coming to Pelican Pointe, our family’s spot in Florida, for the last 34 years, and all during that time, we love going just up the road to Jong’s Produce, a small fruit and produce stand that has been here for slightly longer than we’ve been coming here.
Jong’s started as a small fruit and veggie stand, propped up against a palm tree. As you can see in the photo, it has now grown to completely encompass the three palms that grow up through the market! Started by immigrants, Jong’s is now into the third generation of family ownership, and pride themselves on selling the very best produce at the best price.
Unsurprisingly, Jong’s sells beautiful Florida fruit like tomatoes, big, juicy and perfectly ripe – for many years their pride and joy. They also sell local citrus fruit, often selling grapefruit at 2 for $1.00 and usually several varities of oranges. The local produce is supplemented by Jong’s bringing in other goods, and my personal favourite are the hand selected artichokes they get fresh from California – nice, large, firm ones sold at a very reasonable price.
People sometimes say that immigrants are a drain on the system or take jobs from the locals, but folks like Jong’s show that the reverse is true – immigrants tend to be hard working entrepreneurs, people who make a job for themselves and then, because they’re dealing with other businesses, create employment and income for others. Finding a niche to fill a need is what worked for Jong’s and hopefully will continue to work for them for generations to come!
