Today we’d like to introduce you to Mayra Aceves.
Mayra, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My son Steven Macedo started Leche on his 19th birthday, it was always his dream to have his own coffee company. His goal was to create a sustainable cold brew coffee company that focused on non-dairy combinations and sourced the coffee directly from coffee farmers to obtain single origin coffee while doing his part to help the economic struggle in Chiapas, Mexico. It has evolved from a simple cafe con leche concept to now offering over 50 varieties of flavored milk alternatives. My involvement began on the business side of things, as I have over 15 years of Food & Beverage experience and financial background. But soon Steven’s creativity was contagious and I began to develop my own recipes of “leches’ and adding desserts and savory items to the catering offerings. Leche strives to be a zero waste company, up-cycling all post-production ingredients like coffee, nut and seed grounds into desserts, body and face scrubs. We even use the coffee beans that have roasted too long for good cold brew but make an incredibly delicious coffee spice rub.
Has it been a smooth road?
Starting a business is never easy and although opening a brick and mortar is no picnic, I feel that the pop up business has its own unique challenges that at times seems overwhelming. We began at Farmer’s Markets as many do and the challenge is having enough sales to cover the expenses associated with the markets and production. Many people don’t realize the costs that pop up food businesses have with permits, licenses, commercial kitchen and event fees. Rarely are any sales event free of fees and as a traveling business, every new city or event requires its own set of permits and fees. Many times turning a profit is nearly impossible. Being new carries it’s advantages but also its pitfalls, no one know who you are or what you offer. Building a brand is that much harder when you don’t have a consistent location where people can find you.
We recently had an unfortunate experience where we had a Monday Night event at the same place every week for five months. It began with little to no customers and slowly grew organically with word of mouth and social media, things were picking up sales-wise and recognition of our brand was growing. But it ended abruptly, without notice, due to the event coordinators not acquiring the proper permits and deceiving the community of vendors that trusted them and help them grow. Unfortunately this is not uncommon and it’s hard as a new business to survive a setback with financial consequences that you cannot control. We are lucky to have support from other local businesses that hosts us at no cost like Besties Vegan Paradise in East Hollywood and Bookshow in Highland Park. It really does take a community of support to help a company succeed.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
We feel that Leche is unique in every way! We offer a variety of Cold Brew coffees, Milk Teas, plant-based milks made organically and without preservatives. Our up-cycled products include lip balms, lip scrubs, body & face scrubs, syrups, spice rub and growing daily! Our “leches” or milks are made from Oats, Peanuts, Walnuts, Pecans, Pistachio, Pumpkin, Sunflower or Sesame Seeds to name a few! We then take them one step further and flavor them using ingredients and combinations that help showcase the flavors of our culture, childhood or favorite flavors. The two Best selling leches are Nina Fresa; a strawberry Oat milk made with added poppy seeds for a calcium boost and Mazapan; a raw peanut milk with hints of vanilla, cinnamon and medjool dates. We don’t add any sugar to our milk teas or leches and try to use only local, organic and raw ingredients.
We take pride in our flavored milk creations but also in our innovative way of creating creamy cold brews with almonds, walnuts, oats and pecans without adding water. We think we are mostly known for our crazy flavors and product names like “Lavanderia” or “Elvis” leche. Some customers may know us from our monthly event we curated in Downey called Verano Vegano where we encourage the community to explore plant-based meals and give back by donating essential items for the Homeless in Skid Row. We partnered with Las Jefas Veganas, a group of young female activists that are trying to spread compassion not just for animals but for people in need. They should definitely be on your list of inspiring people to interview next!
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I’m so glad you asked that question. I think Los Angeles is creating new opportunities for pop up businesses like ours by allowing vendors to street sell. Some counties like OC have debilitating rules and regulations combined with higher tax, rent, and penalty fees that hinder small businesses from becoming a brick and mortar. We spend a lot of time in City Council Meetings and Health Department offices debating these issues. For example, if you are a business in Long Beach with a Business License, Health Permit and Commercial Kitchen, you are already paying to conduct business in Long Beach. Yet each time you participate in an event, farmer’s or night market in that same city you are required to obtain an additional Temporary Food Facility Permit for one day. The cost varies but is on average $145. That may not sound like a lot but when you take into account the cost of your product, staff, supplies, commercial kitchen rental fees to prepare for said event, you end up having to try to make at least $500 in sales just to break even. It seems excessive to pay for permits repeatedly when you are already paying an annual permit and license. If Los Angeles and surrounding areas want to cultivate a new wave of entrepreneurs especially sustainable plant-based food businesses, something needs to be done.
Pricing:
- All 16oz Glass Bottles of any Leche are $8 with a $1 bottle deposit return
Contact Info:
- Website: www.drinkleche.com
- Phone: 323-736-2669
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @drinkleche
- Facebook: @drinklecheco
- Twitter: @drinkleche
- Other: veranovegano.com
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