Italian Deli changing hands after decades of being family-run

A downtown favourite for Italian sandwiches and European food items will soon have new operators.

Italian Food Imports—also known as the Italian Deli—has been sold, its owners announced on Sunday.

The Blanshard deli is famed for its paninis and ready-made Italian meals and salads, as well as a small grocery section stocked with pastas, olive oils, tinned tomatoes, and other European goods.

Run by the same family since it opened 41 years ago, its owners Maurizio and Massimo Segato say they will miss the customers and friendships formed over the years.

Their parents bought the deli from its previous owner in 1985. Maurizio and Massimo's father was a mechanic who would occasionally pick up food from the shop. One day, their father heard the owner “kind of grumbling ‘oh I want to sell this thing,’” Massimo told Capital Daily.

“My dad was like, ‘well, we'll buy it,’ and sure enough, they did.”

Maurizio and Massimo took over all operations from their parents in 1995. Massimo said he and his brother never wanted to be in the same position as the former owner, who seemed to have lost interest in the work when he sold the deli.

That very mindset is what led them to decide that now was the time to sell.

“We always said that we wanted to sell before we were done because we didn't want to get to the point where we're coming into work, but not wanting to come in and being bitter,” Massimo said.

The Segatos put the business up for sale, and Massimo said it “sold quite quickly” after going on the market. The sale was finalized two weeks ago.

The new owners are two women who intend to keep the deli running as is, according to Massimo, who says “they’re going to kill it.”

“They're wonderful. I'm looking forward to seeing how it all works for them,” Massimo said. “I would assume that after a few months, you know, they might want to put their own spin on little things here and there, but they don't want to ‘fix what ain't broken’ was their wording.”

Next week will be the Segatos’ last at the helm; in the meantime, they say they hope patrons stop by to “say hello/goodbye.”