What it’s like to run ‘the sweet shop for grownups’

After years of distributing shoes and apparel worldwide for luxury fashion brands such as Prada and Bally, Christoph Heidt was in his late 30s when he sold his business in 2006 and made a bold promise.

“I said, in the next business I get into, if it doesn’t work out, I want to eat and drink my stocks,” he declared in all seriousness.

At the time, the German Heidt was thinking of purchasing a vineyard, an idea that appealed greatly to the wine connoisseur in him. But old friend and mentor Johannes Kiderlen discouraged Heidt, and instead offered him a more suitable alternative: to join Vom Fass, a company founded by Kiderlen’s father.

German for “from the cask,” Vom Fass offers a superior selection of oils, vinegars, wines, and spirits stored in beautiful bottles and sold according to how much a customer needs. How could Heidt refuse when he loved everything about the brand?

Describing himself as a “passionate collector of culinary pleasures,” the tall and  trim Heidt takes his salads with the company’s forest raspberry vinegar, and complements hard cheeses with a slathering of the brand’s date vinegar. As a competitive ultra-marathoner who covers anywhere from 100 kilometers to 100 miles, he always starts his day with a serving of flaxseed oil, hailed as one of the most powerful plant foods on the planet, given its anticancer, stroke, heart disease, and diabetes properties.

“It’s a lifestyle,” sums up Heidt, Vom Fass’ COO, of the store’s wide appeal to gourmets, foodies, fellow connoisseurs, and health-conscious clients.

In Manila recently to launch Vom Fass’ 33rd branch outside of Germany, a 53 square meter corner outlet in the newly opened East Wing of the Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Heidt hopes that Filipino shoppers will take to the store the way Anderson Sambar and his family did when they first came across the Vom Fass branch in Singapore. Drawn to the colorful contents in clear balloon bottles, Sambar “wanted to try everything,” he admits with a laugh. “But coming from a culinary background, I also wanted to try the oils, and once you try one, you want to try another to see the difference.”

There’s certainly something for everyone in a store that is internationally touted as “the sweet shop for grownups.” Sourced from all over Europe, the products boast unique characteristics depending on their country of origin. Olive oils from Tuscany, for instance, have a spicy flavor perfect for pastas, while those from Greece are fruitier and fresh, making an excellent salad dressing.  Nut oils are usually from the south of France, fruit oils from Germany. As for the mango and calamansi vinegars, two items that are popular among Europeans and fabulous with fish or salad, those are made from fruits imported from the Philippines, of course. Each item comes with a description, and customers are encouraged to sample the oils, vinegars, whiskies, or spirits before purchasing.

To break the ice, Heidt usually offers overwhelmed first-timers some Aceto Balsamico di Modena vinegar, “full and rich, spicy and fruity, like a storm of herbs, spice, and honey,” describes the Vom Fass website of this best-selling balsamic vinegar from Modena, Italy. But the COO is also amazed at how much more knowledgeable some patrons are. In Taipei, when a customer ordered olive oil, Heidt recommended recipes where he could use the ingredient. “The customer said, ‘Oh, I’m not buying this oil for cooking. I’m buying it for my hair!’” shares Heidt with a laugh. Impressed by the how food in Asia is linked to health, the man who penned the Vom Fass book Savour the Pleasures of Life! likes how Asians employ the multidish approach to dining, a style that involves the use of various oils and vinegars in one meal.

Now 47, Heidt pronounces himself “a very happy person.” Besides breaking his ultra-marathon records, he looks like he’s found his passion.  “I still have many friends in the fashion business,” he says, “and I always tell them, you cannot eat your shoes and bags.”

Vom Fass has over 250 partners worldwide with shops in Germany, Switzerland, UK, France, Belgium, Italy, Singapore, Japan, USA, and now, the Philippines. Visit Vom Fass at the Lower Ground Level of Shangri-La Plaza’s East Wing. Contact Vom Fass at 4705541 or log on to https://www.vomfass.com for more information.