Cuba opens first bulk goods store in Havana

Cuba

Cuba opens first bulk goods store in Havana 2

Cuba has opened its first bulk goods store in Havana aimed especially at private sector restaurants and bed and breakfasts. The private sector still doesn’t have access to wholesale stores, but now they can at least buy in bulk.

CCTV America’s Michael Voss reports.

Cuba’s first and only bulk goods supermarket, Zona +, has been open for about a month and business is brisk.

The supermarket had just received a rare shipment of Cuban beer the day we visited. It has been in short supply for months, but as word spread, private restaurants and bar owners flocked to the shop to buy as many cases as they could handle.

The goods are sold at retail prices, the same as in any supermarket, although there are savings in buying in bulk like these large tubs of mayonnaise. Another of the most sought after items is toilet paper.

The aim is to see how the store works and roll out similar ones across the country. But there are still no plans to give the private sector access to goods at wholesale prices.

The shop is a modest affair with just three aisles, which makes it smaller than most western convenience stores. But it’s an acknowledgement by the state that the private sector is a growing force and does need looking after.