Michele StuevenPepsiCo launched year two of its signature Jefa-Owned campaign in support of Latina small business owners this week honoring Lucy Haro at her little corner of Peru, Qusqo Bistro and Gallery in West Los Angeles.
In partnership with celebrity chef and restaurateur Lorena Garcia, and powered by PepsiCo Juntos Crecemos (Together We Grow), the five-year $50 million program aims to provide access to business-building resources, opportunity and capital for Latina-owned businesses.
“Since the beginning of time, men have always led kitchens as the professionals and the women cook in the house for the family,” Garcia told L.A. Weekly over a brunch of chica juice, platanos, fried yucca, ceviche, lomo saltado and warm rice pudding. “Over time, women became inspired and empowered to start their own businesses, but statistically most kitchens and restaurants are owned and run by men. Then when our parents or our children get sick, we are the ones who end up taking care of everyone. I’m the only Latina who has a restaurant in Las Vegas out of about 4,000 restaurants on the strip. We’re trying to change the dynamic and those numbers and show that we can be leaders.”
Qusqo Bistro and Gallery (Michele Stueven)
On National Jefa Day, March 31, which was established in 2021 by L.A.-based Latina entrepreneur Patty Delgado whose lifestyle brand Hija de tu Madre includes apparel and accessories, PepsiCo Juntos Crecemos will cover the tab from pre-selected menu options at Qusqo Bistro and Gallery, for the first 200 guests. Limit one complimentary meal per person, while supplies last.
Lady boss Haro has represented the Latin community and has helmed the charming and colorful Qusqo Bistro and Gallery for 15 years on Santa Monica Boulevard.
“The pandemic was a real breaking point for us and we didn’t know if we could stay open,” Haro told the crowd, which included last year’s recipient Nayomie Mendoza, owner of Cuernavaca’s Grill. “We didn’t even have a functioning website. Then came this program offering support at the worst time. People think we’re out of the pandemic – we’re still rebuilding.
Qusqo Bistro ceviche (Michele Stueven)
With customers increasingly online, PepsiCo has created business-building programs and education to help Hispanic-owned restaurants, bodegas and carnicerías make strategic upgrades to their technology, services and business models.
Applications for the PepsiCo Juntos Crecemos Hispanic Digital & Delivery Program are now open nationwide for Hispanic small business owners in the food and beverage industry. The personalized business-building program offers one-on-one expert consultation for delivery logistics, technology, marketing and search engine optimization.
Applications for The PepsiCo Foundation’s IMPACTO Hispanic Business Accelerator will open summer of 2023 in participating cities (Las Vegas, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Los Angeles, Albuquerque, El Paso, Chicago, New York City and San Antonio).
For more information about the Hispanic Digital & Delivery Program and to be notified when the application period opens for the IMPACTO Hispanic Business Accelerator, visit PepsiCoJuntosCrecemos.com.
Creator of National Jefa Day Patty Delgado, left, and anchor for Triunfo Latino on VME TV Jackeline Cacho (Michele Stueven)
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