Four Spanish entrepreneurs from sectors as diverse as art, engineering, design, and distribution, have launched Lata.Shop in New York, a digital store specializing in high-quality canned goods from Spain.
Nacho Valle, a former gallery owner from Valencia; Vicent Sendra, a distributor originally from Pego (Alicante); Daniel Viedma, a telecommunications engineer from Badalona; and Xavier Gallego, a graphic designer from Vic, met in the U.S. city and decided to combine their talents to create a business around a traditional product: canned goods.
The project was born after multiple informal gatherings accompanied by vermouth and products they received from their country of origin. While they initially considered opening a vermouth bar inspired by the coastal bars of the Mediterranean, this proved to be quite unfeasible in very expensive New York. Therefore, they have developed a digital model focused on monthly subscriptions.
Lata.Shop offers two types of boxes under the name Discovery Box: a standard option for $49.90 that includes four selected cans (and occasionally a fifth), and a reduced version for $29.90 with three products. From its beginnings with just 40 subscribers, it now has over 1,200 active customers.
The catalog combines popular products such as pickled mussels, tuna belly, and razor clams, with less common canned goods such as kokotxas (hake cheeks), eel, cuttlefish in ink, and cod liver. In total, they have around 300 references and are official importers of recognized brands such as Real Conservera Española, Nuri, Rosalita, Porto Muiños, and Herpac.
The packaging design, by Gallego, and the rigorous curation of the products are two pillars of the project’s success.
During the pandemic, the demand for canned goods skyrocketed in the United States, a context that favored the consolidation of the business. Today, 95% of shipments are concentrated in the North American country, although they have also begun to receive orders from Canada, Europe, the Middle East, and Oceania.
Despite the digital growth, the founders keep alive their initial idea: to open a tavern in New York where canned goods can be enjoyed accompanied by vermouth, in the style of the traditional bars of the Spanish Levante.
