Today we’d like to introduce you to Victoria Gonzalez.
Hi Victoria, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am from Chihuahua, Mexico, and moved to Houston when I was five years old. I have always loved food and have always been very curious about cultures. I began traveling alone at a very young age and fell in love with how food could tell you so much about the people and history. I decided to study culinary arts at the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, where I explored my passion for food and hospitality. After working abroad in Barcelona at a Michelin star restaurant, I realized how much I loved the industry but how sacrificing it was. So I returned, and while finishing up my bachelor’s in hospitality, my dad had begun making a delicious aioli back home (Houston). I tried it and instantly fell in love. We started producing it and selling it around campus and back home to friends and family. When I graduated, my dad had already found a spot to build the commercial kitchen, and he asked me to come and run it. Honestly, I was so set on working in vineyards by that point that I wasn’t so happy with the decision. But soon enough, it became my baby, and it began to grow. Salsa Maya has grown so much in the last six years, and it changed my perspective on my career. Six years later and I am incredibly proud of what we have built.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Opening a business comes with roads full of potholes and bumps. And there is no precise way to go about it, but I think that is what gives you and your company character. I work with my family, and it is always hard to separate business and personal life with them, but at the end of the day, we still have each other’s backs. It has been hard in some physical ways as well. When Hurricane Harvey hit, we flooded about three feet, and our commercial kitchen had to be gutted and re-done. So it was a humbling moment to put everything on pause and start over. But like I said, with challenges come great rewards. When we saw that we had to put up new walls and floors, we decided to expand the kitchen. With that came new machinery, and now our volume has increased due to something so unexpected and scary.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Salsa Maya is a deliciously spicy habanero aioli. It can be spread on everything. Use it as a marinade, dip, spread, or even as a dressing on your vegetables. Salsa Maya adds a kick to your food, and it enhances the flavor as well. It is a family-run company that has been expanding for the last six years. Salsa Maya is sold in different stores around Houston like Spec’s, Central Market, William Sonoma, and many excellent restaurants like Urban Eats. It is used as well by some chefs in Houston! Apart from selling in our hometown, we are currently in six states in the USA, the United Emirates, and Spain. Salsa Maya is something I am proud of. The brand stands out, not only because of the packaging but also because when we say it’s deliciously spicy, we mean it. The habanero is front and center, and we genuinely offer a product that honors both flavor and spice.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
My parents raised me to have a hard-working mentality and that everything I can imagine is possible. I would say passion wakes me up; dedication keeps me going, but love for what I do is what lifts me after falling. When people see that you believe in your product and yourself, they believe in it too.
Contact Info:
- Email: salsamayaus@gmail.com
- Website: www.salsamayaus.com
- Instagram: salsamayaus
- Facebook: salsamayaus
- Twitter: salsamayaus
