Let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there. How did your company get started and why?

I began Three Sisters in 2014, in terms of coming up with the company, what we would produce, developing the business model, etc. I left my job in education in June of 2016 and dedicated myself to building the company from the ground up. I joined Golden Gate Meat Company, where our chorizos are co-packed, in November, 2016, to be part of their sausage and salumi production team as they were building out their manufacturing facility and aging rooms. In January, 2018, the facility and rooms were ready and we began making a line of fresh sausages for Golden Gate Meat and finally in June, I was able to begin my own chorizo production. Since then, I transformed our generations-old family recipe for traditional Spanish chorizo into a USDA approved fresh product to be sold at retail markets, specialty food stores, restaurants and commercial use. Generated sales at multiple locations, experienced growth, and have maintained a consistent presence in the competitive Bay Area food market. Created all marketing materials and campaigns, including collaborative work with various independent grocers, specialty food retail and various events and tastings, including state and national culinary trade shows. Designed business model making Three Sisters a financially prudent, solvent food start-up with immediate room for growth and product expansion. Currently in 14 locations across the Bay Area, with 3 retail products, while maintaining an online sales presence, generating consistent revenue each quarter while growing brand awareness throughout California.

What is your product and how would you describe it?

Traditional Spanish-style dry-cured chorizo. We use only 100% pork shoulder, 7 ingredients, no artificial preservatives, flavors or colors and zero sugar. We are a clean-label product, hand-made in Richmond, California. Our dry-cured is tailored for D2C and e-commerce sales, along with traditional retail, speciality grocery and wineries.

Has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

No, not even a little bit. The challenges have been too many to count at this point, but I would say the biggest has been getting it off the ground. Wasn’t easy and I didn’t have a lot of support from Golden Gate Meat, but I persevered and now I’m in a position where I can finally produce and sell the dry-cured line, which has always been my goal from day one.

What is your next challenge to overcome? What help are you looking for?

Making us the premier dry-cured chorizo in California. I want to get our chorizo into the right retail and online marketplaces, along with D2C via our website. I know we make a great product, so now it’s matter of getting out to the public. Ideally, I’d like to avoid using distributors whenever possible, given the sizable margins they require.

Tell us about a time that you received help from another entrepreneur or mentor, and how it helped your business?

Honestly, I’ve had to figure most of this out on my own. I haven’t had a mentor, so it’s been mostly trial and error and listening to other entrepreneurs tell their story and learning from their experiences. I have certainly learned what not to do during the past 4 years of building Three Sisters and I believe that is why we will ultimately be successful.

What skills or resources have you learned along that you would like to share with the Foodbevy Community?

Many, but mostly persistence and tenacity. You honestly can’t give up in this business, especially the meat industry, which is incredibly difficult to break into, especially when starting with a fresh product that needs refrigeration. So much of this is constantly revising your strategy and to be one step ahead as your building. You just have to trust the process and believe in your product and yourself, no matter what. But, I also have learned that none of that matters if you don’t adapt to the current situation – which is why we are now focused on producing the dry-cured and taking a step back from any fresh production.