Slashed Prices is an Understatement: An apparent contradiction that becomes a marketing strategy at Perrone's Bar. But how can an espresso cost only 30 cents?
The news
In a summer where paying 15 euros for a cake slice or 50 cents for an ice cube in your coffee no longer raises eyebrows, the 30-cent espresso at Bar Pasticceria Rosticceria Perrone in Alia, a town of 3,364 residents within the metropolitan area of Palermo (although closer to Caltanissetta), leaves people astonished. As Today reports, Perrone's 30-cent espresso isn't a last-minute gimmick to go against the grain and attract attention; it's a philosophy that has guided the family's business since 1960.
"Better to lose (money) than lose the customer" was and still is the motto devised by the founding father, Bernardo Perrone. After the success of his catering business - the first of its kind in the area - Bernardo founded the coffee shop, holding his name, in 1960. Focusing on coffee was his foresight. The low price, which already drew the entire town's attention back then, was a genuine marketing idea. Customers, drawn in to have the cheapest coffee in Italy, were tempted to buy from the pastry shop: from pasta to cannoli, croissants, and almond sweets…A strategy that still works today and remains the creed of the entire Perrone family. If, in the beginning, the coffee cost 20 lire - one-third of what competitors charged - today, with the advent of the euro and the passing of the pandemic, it has only risen to a mere 30 cents, compared to the national average of 1.09 euros.
The Perrone business is still a family affair. Anyone who comes to Alia meets 93-year-old Santina Alessandra, the founder's wife; Giuseppe, the son, who works in the lab; daughter-in-law Mariagrazia at the cash register; and grandchildren Tecla and Bernardo (named after their grandfather), respectively behind the counter and in the lab with Giuseppe. "We do everything as a family except for one employee; that's the only way we can keep going. Our children were born and raised here, Tecla was making espresso as a child, standing on a beer crate to reach the machine; all the customers wanted coffee made by her. Before Covid and rising energy costs, we calculated that a coffee only cost us 17 cents in raw materials and electricity, not to mention that we don't pay rent because it's our home, and labor, because it's us. We're content," says Giuseppe, who has just finished baking croissants. "Utility bills have skyrocketed, but we won't give up my father-in-law's brilliant idea. Increasing it to 40 or 50 cents wouldn't change anything. Our motto is: better to lose money than customers," Mariagrazia continues.
The Perrone family typically consumes 6 kilograms of coffee per day, which, considering 9 grams of coffee for each espresso, amounts to 857 cups per day. "We often go up to nine kilograms. The small roastery that has been serving us for fifty-three years, Allenza, dedicates one day of its weekly production solely to us," he explains. But it's not just coffee at Perrone's that has a surprisingly low cost; it's also the iced coffee (which is a granita here) at 60 cents, the macchiato coffee at 40 cents, the “caffè corretto” at 80 cents (coffee with addition of a spirit), and the cappuccino at 1 euro. The glass of water is included, as is the service at tables indoors and outdoors.
Cover photos: LGB 2019
