We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jessica Fierro. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jessica below.

Jessica, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s kick things off with talking about how you serve the underserved, because in our view this is one of the most important things the small business community does for society – by serving those who the giant corporations ignore, small business helps create a more inclusive and just world for all of us.

Atrevida Beer Company is an independent craft beer brewery where a Latina is owner/head brewer and operates a woman forward business. Our company motto, tagline and culture is “Diversity, it’s on tap!” We challenge the standard definition of craft beer by changing the narrative one pint at a time.

We are in an industry that is white male dominated. I strive to give women, bipoc people and the LGBTQ+ community the opportunities that I was not given but wanted in my journey as a brewer. In this industry people of color or the the BIPOC community account for about 2% of the craft bee industry. Additionally, women account for just slightly over 1% of the industry.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am the Owner and Head Brewer of Atrevida Beer Company. Atrevida, a Spanish word, translated to English means a woman that is bold, daring and fearless, I am responsible for recipe building, brewing and sales operations, scheduling, allocating/ordering resources, and developing/implementing policies, procedures, and plans. In short, I wear all the hats! I’m the first Latina Brewery Owner and Head Brewer in Colorado. I build all my own recipes that are inspired by either my culture or someone else’s culture that has been shared with me. The brew house’s I use are a 1bbl and 10bbl system and there is only one button between them. When we say hand crafted beer at Atrevida we mean it. Myself and the ladies are using paddles and rakes, diving into tanks, moving hoses and pumps, taking temps and gravities, Nothing is automated. We are lifting 50lb bags of grain into the kettle like nobody’s business. If ever you wanted to find out what woman’s Brew work was come on down for a 10bbl brew day, most men couldn’t hang!
Prior to owning and brewing at Atrevida, I was a homebrewer and the winner of the national homebrew competition called BEERLAND which aired on VICELAND (the channel) season one. I competed against competitors here in Colorado, New York, New Mexico, California and Hawaii and brought the WIN back for Colorado Springs!
I created and chaired, as PBS Leader, the FIRST Colorado Springs Chapter of Pink Boots Society, I have and continue to give back to multiple charity organizations locally and nationally. In my journey as a homebrewer I interned and guest brewed at various breweries throughout ten years prior to owning my brewery. This from a woman who initially hated beer until I arrived in Germany with my husband on orders with the Army and went on a tour of a brewery and tasted what real craft beer should be. There’s a story there!
Since opening Atrevida Beer Co. I have hosted the very FIRST Pink Boots Society International Women’s Collaboration Brew day (March 8th, 2018 to present) in Colorado Springs! I have given endless hours and donated a lot of beer sales to charitable events such as Tessa, Beer for Justice, Healing pets foundation, UCCS Sustainability Program, inside out youth services to name a few but believe me the list goes on. Something that I am very proud of!
I was by trade a Cosmetologist/Barber and a professional hair stylist, make up artist and barber all the while I was brewing in the background as my hobby, at the time, preparing me to soon open and own my brewery. Working with my hands and using my creativity is what sets me apart from the rest. My skill in hair color formulation, beer recipe building and leading people are my strongest suits.
From 1999-2013 I was also a Military Spouse, married to Rich Fierro an Army officer. I was the leader of the family readiness groups for his companies and assisted the wives of his Soldiers while he served four combat tours and 15 years in the service. My love of country and Soldiers was recognized by selection for the Order of the Molly Pitcher Medallion and Award. I am also the mother of two beautiful children. Ricky Fierro, a music production engineer in Los Angeles and Kassandra Fierro, who has been brewing with me since she was 8 years old, worked at my brewery since 18 yrs old and is currently on a scholarship for brewing school with SDSU in California which includes an internship with Coronado Brewery!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

This one is easy, but at the time was one of the most challenging positions to be in. I bought my business end of January of 2018. I immediately hit the ground running and was determined to put a face with the name to really brand ourselves. My company was on the rise! We were doing great and making money and most importantly people loved my beer! Then, 2020 hit.
There was an absolute pause of business, We were forced to close our doors to any foot traffic and could only provide to-go beers curbside. My company took a huge hit. I knew that I had to come up with more creative ways to generate revenue. All I knew was that I did not want to let my employees down or have to let them go! This was their livelihood. I immediately submitted for every single grant that I could qualify for. I got involved in our local town hall meetings and was vocal. I reached out to our local and state representatives on behalf of small business and minority owned businesses. I saw that my peers in the industry had already received grants that I, as a woman owned/ veteran owned/ and BIPOC owned business was still fighting for. I was vocal about it. I knew that change would only come if I spoke out about it and made my voice heard. As a result, I hosted our Mayor, John Suthers and our Colorado state representative Senator John Hickenlooper at my brewery to speak on the restaurant revitalization grant program that they were rolling out with minority and women owned businesses taking priority. We also participated in discussions and spoke with Senator Michael Bennet on numerous occasions on the same subject. If you want to see change get involved with your local and state representatives. It’s not going to be easy but it will be worth it.. Change comes from the top.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

“Diversity, It’s on tap!” that is our motto, tagline and company culture I have that prominently placed above our entrance to the brewery in big bold and lighted letters, on a marquee. This has caught a lot of peoples attention. I, honestly, never realized that folks have their own interpretation of what “Diversity” means. I found myself consistently having to explain to people that it means inclusion and equity. Folks in our town either get it or they don’t. I have always said and to this day I say the same: It is not about me shoving my culture down your throat. It’s about creating a dialogue where we can have a sharing of cultures. I believe this is what sets me apart I aspire to a more inclusive industry where women, people of color, the lgbtq+ community and others are not judged on who they are but on their skill level.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.atrevidabeerco.com
• Instagram: atrevidabeerco
• Facebook: Atrevida Beer Co
• Linkedin: Atrevida Beer Company