We recently connected with Gabriela Rodriguez and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Gabriela , thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

We started Soldadera Coffee to be able to share our Mexican heritage over something everybody can immediately resonate with. After all, who doesn’t love a good cup of coffee?

Our flagship flavor Café de Olla takes inspiration from the legacy of the Soldaderas, the brave female soldiers of the 1910 Mexican Revolution. These women crafted the original Café de Olla recipe, brewing coffee with spices in clay pots to keep soldiers warm and alert, which is why it’s known as ‘coffee of the clay pot.

Through our coffee, we want people to be transported to a place where spices and flavors are abundant and where women are the driving force for good in their communities.

We were inspired to do this by our grandmother Cristina, who was a social activist in Mexico and a voice against injustice towards others, especially women. She would attend religious retreats in the early mornings to the Spanish-styled Cathedrals of Mexico City. She would set up tables with carafes full of hot coffee for the community.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

We provide a unique and authentic cold brew coffee based on the flavors of Mexico, from our traditional Café de Olla, to our holiday-inspired Canelita cinnamon cold brew, everything we do takes inspiration from our Mexican heritage.
What is also unique about our product is that it’s made with all-natural ingredients, which has helped us carve out a niche in the health and wellness community as more people are looking for healthier alternatives to their daily iced caramel macchiato.
We are fortunate in our home state of Michigan to be surrounded by a thriving entrepreneurial community that wants to see startups like ours grow and be successful. Last month, we attended the Making it in Michigan trade show at Michigan State University, which was attended by many other Michigan entrepreneurs, and we felt inspired by the dedication of big retailers like Meijer to be more inclusive in bringing new brands to store shelves.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Our most effective strategy is crashing the party. When we were a young brand, we knew our best bet was to get in front of people who had the voice to promote it. That meant going to trade shows, conventions, economic development meetings, city development meetings, anywhere we knew powerful people were going to be in the room.
As a minority business, its difficult for us to access capital. Fortunately for us, in our hometown of Grand Rapids, we have a robust startup community focused on diversity and inclusion and helping deliver the resources to entrepreneurs who would otherwise not have access to them.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Pay attention to the data. We know for a fact that our primary audience tends to be women in their 20s and 30s who are looking for a unique product with a strong social justice message. When creating content for our social media channels, it’s important that we curate that content in a way that resonates with our target audience while staying true to our original mission. Finally, be genuine and make partnerships. Soldadera is always open to making partnerships and collaborations with businesses and organizations to reach audiences that are not within normal reach. So reach out and Let’s connect!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://soldaderacoffee.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soldaderacoffee/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Soldaderacoffee/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/27029275/admin/feed/posts/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/soldaderacoffee

Image Credits

Soldadera Coffee via Facebook.