The Velasco family owns two cinemas, one in Alhama de Murcia and the other in Totana.At first glance, José comes across as a man of few words, serious and entirely focused on his business. Nothing could be further from the truth. Spend a little time with him and what stands out is his kindness and humility. He smiles easily and is remarkably comfortable in front of the camera, something every photographer appreciates. He enjoys country life in the company of his three dogs: Karma, Nube and Iru.He is the father of two highly qualified children, both of whom already work alongside him, giving him the reassurance that the family succession is well secured.
What memories does this cinema bring back?
I grew up here. Although my father worked in the fruit business, he was a very enterprising man who invested in other ventures. Sadly, he passed away when I was just 14 years old. One of those investments was the cinema business and, when I was about eight years old, I een helped during the construction of both the Alhama and Totana cinemas, pushing wheelbarrows full of materials for the bricklayers. Inside the theatre, I always chose the highest seats because I was so small and wanted a better view of the screen.
What kind of films do you enjoy?
Generally speaking, action films and British comedies.
Who are your favourite actor and actress?
Al Pacino and Nicole Kidman.
Cinemas are not particularly profitable these days, are they?
That’s true. Ours only operate at weekends, but we keep them because they are part of our family tradition, and we’d hate to close them.
How did you get started in the fruit business?
My grandfather used to send fruit to my father, who sold it at Mercamadrid, in Legazpi. As the eldest of eight siblings, I was helping him and learning from him from a very young age. My father used to send me to the bank to deposit cheques. I was so tiny I couldn’t even reach the counter, but it was excellent preparation for taking on responsibility.
When he passed away, I took over the business to help my mother and my seven brothers and sisters. I believe life was preparing me for everything that came afterwards, as though it had already been written into the script of a film.My siblings chose to pursue higher education, but I wanted to work, so I founded the company when I was just 18 years old.
You can’t complain. If I’m not mistaken, it is the largest family-owned table grape company in the world.
Yes, I think it is, or at least one of the largest. Others have investment funds among their shareholders, but, for the time being, that is not something we are interested in.With the whole family involved in the business, it must be almost impossible not to talk about work at home.We have completely banned that, and we stick to it without exception. I can guarantee it. We never bring either our problems or our successes home with us; we try to protect that personal space.
Why is the company called El Ciruelo?
Because of my father. He was the one who supplied Legazpi with plums from our area. My grandfather sent him there with the fruit, and he was responsible for selling it. People nicknamed him El Ciruelo (“The Plum Tree”), and I thought naming the company after him would be a fitting tribute.
Do you watch a lot of films at home too?Yes. We watch films on a projection screen. This weekend I watched The Godfather for the eighth time. I was really looking forward to seeing it with my son, who had never watched it before. It’s a classic I could watch a thousand times.
I’ve heard you’ve managed to keep your childhood friends despite the absence of Facebook and social media.
We’re a group of around twenty friends. To make sure we didn’t drift apart after getting married and starting our own lives, we agreed to meet once a month, on the last Wednesday of every month. Thanks to that, we’ve stayed in touch for more than 30 years. We aren’t always all twenty together—whoever can make it comes—but that’s what has kept the group alive.
Do you travel a lot?
Yes. I drive around 70,000 kilometres a year, travel to Brazil, where we have our company, three or four times annually, and also make business trips across Europe. As a family, we’ve established two regular holidays each year: one in September and another at the beginning of January, once the grape season has finished. After the hustle and bustle of Christmas, my wife and I always enjoy visiting wineries, either in Spain or abroad.
So you enjoy good wine and, presumably, good food as well. Which wines do you prefer?
If I have to choose, I’d go for a Ribera del Duero, accompanied by a good steak. Although I also enjoy fish, and in Murcia we’re fortunate to have an excellent selection.If you ask me to recommend one restaurant, I’d choose El Nazareno, in Roa, near Peñafiel. I have a rather amusing story with its owner. I once sent him a box of grapes, but the courier decided to charge him for it. He called me quite annoyed, saying that he already had plenty of grapes in the area and asking how I could possibly think of charging him. I explained that it had all been a misunderstanding, we cleared it up, and we’ve been friends ever since.
