Angels succeed in launching their businesses with much sacrifice and despite the crisis
Alex Uriostegui is filled with emotion when he remembers the moment when he saw the first bottle of Salsa Brava finished, after months of work, sacrifices and failures.
“The first time I saw the finished project, I felt very proud of myself, to feel that I really could achieve it… I feel like a champion for having achieved something that cost me a lot; days and nights of delivery, ”says the 28-year-old Mexican moved to tears.
A month ago, he launched a “spicy” sauce in the best Aztec style with a recipe that took him months to perfect, but which has been his lifeline after losing his job as a banker last April due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
“When you find yourself in financial difficulties is when you most see the need to do something and what we normally do because we are Latino, because we are Mexican, is to go find a job and I did it, but there were rejections because the businesses were closing,” he explains Alex.
“At that moment is when I communicated with God and asked a lot to inspire me and give me that desire to really do something great.”
With unwavering faith, she decided to turn into reality a project that she had been planning in her mind and in her kitchen for months, but which she achieved through effort and discipline.
“I began to educate myself, I began to grab financial education books, motivational books, podcasts, in a few words with the help of God and discipline I took the first step to do this,” says the young resident of Placentia, a city of the Orange County.
The creation of the sauce was not easy, he had to try many times before achieving that flavor that makes this product not only a dressing, but also a condiment to marinate any type of food.
“I threw away a lot of jars, I did it while no one was watching me,” confesses Alex, who discovered his passion for the traditional salsa macha at a gathering of friends, after tasting a sauce that the mother of one of them had brought from Monterrey.
An artisan product
The home of Alex, his wife Tatiana and their 4-year-old son Gareth, has become the area where Salsa Brava is created, which comes in two varieties: spicy and more spicy. There, Alex takes care of the entire process from the recipe, 100% homemade, to packaging and distribution to ensure the success of his brand, Valente, in honor of whom he considers his second father Evelio Valente.
Alex’s goal is to succeed with his seasoning to dedicate his achievements to his father Alejandro Uriostegui.
“When I arrived in this country, I saw my father’s suffering. He lost everything with my mom [Griselda Ríos]… And I want to achieve all this for him, it is a gift for my father, because he has struggled a lot ”, he adds.
Salsa Brava is already available in some supermarkets in the city of Anaheim such as Francisco’s Meat and La Valentina Market, as well as on the Salsa Valente social networks, but among Alex’s plans is to become a recognized brand in the world and already has two investors willing to support your project.
He concludes by saying, with his faith intact, that his salsa will become the “most recognized” in his beloved Mexico.
Loroco Bistro can beat everything
Last March, Daniel Antonio Cruz and his wife Milagros de la Cruz Tevez completed the remodeling of their new restaurant, Loroco Bistro.
They were ready to open the doors of a dream for which he had been preparing for years, when the pandemic ended his plans and the immediate closure of all commercial establishments was ordered.
“We always had this dream of opening a restaurant, we never imagined the situation we were going to find ourselves in. We heard about the pandemic, but since it was on the other side of the world, we never thought it would affect this country so much and we decided to move forward with the project, ”remembers Daniel, a native of the municipality of Soyapango, in El Salvador.
With his experience working as a chef in other restaurants and that of his wife who is a waitress, they were ready to start a new phase, but COVID-19 forced them to stop their plans.
“We kept the business remodeled, but closed,” explains the 37-year-old.
However, the desire to see Loroco Bistro serving traditional Salvadoran dishes made them stay at the foot of the canyon and three months ago they managed to open their restaurant.
“To be honest, there are a lot of savings invested, with the financial help of my wife’s brother, but it has hit us a lot. [la pandemia]It was very difficult for three months, but thank God when we opened the restaurant, as by magic people began to arrive ”.
The good reception of the establishment in the city of Whittier, south of Los Angeles County, has allowed this couple to get ahead in uncertain times.
“Emotionally it was hard, we thought about abandoning the project and dedicating ourselves to something else, looking for work in another field, but the desire to get ahead was stronger.”
Daniel adds that today they are full of hope with their business and happy to be able to offer their customers the traditional pupusas, the star dish on their menu.
