Isabella Giannini : Taqueria Guaima
Meet Vanessa and her eldest daughter. They have become much like family to our team, and have relied on us just as hard as we have relied on them. If you have been following our adventure the past two quarters, you would know that we have encountered many bumps in the road.
From starting out subletting from the bakery, to entertaining the idea of a food truck, we had finally ended upon taking over half of a dress store to sell typical non-cooked Mexican desserts, chips, and fresh fruit. We had all of our plans put together. We had located a sink, a 3-compartment sink, and all of the necessities to launch her new business. CET was planning to build us a counter top and redo our ceiling tiles and floor. We had paint colors picked out, as well as a menu. Our team scrounged everything we could together to form this. Yacanex even had Laura (dress store owner) agree to Vanessa forgoing the rent for the first few months, and in exchange CET would also redo the ceiling tiles on Laura’s half. Vanessa was extremely excited (as were we) but suddenly over Memorial Day weekend, it all fell apart. Laura was apparently pressuring Vanessa to pay rent now (even though we have yet to move in) and was very behind on her own rent, putting our entire situation at risk.
When we presented at City Hall, we chose to focus on the positive outcomes of this project. Vanessa, as well as our team, learned a lot about being adaptable and resourceful. We learned about trusting your instincts and not being afraid to say something or walk away if the situation is not right for you. Our team learned about investing in Vanessa as an entrepreneur, and providing her with the business skills that she can use to invest in her future businesses. These are the things we chose to focus on when presenting to City Hall. It’s not all about the final product; sometimes it is about a test and fail perspective, and the journey along the way.