We recently connected with Maritza Abreu and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Maritza, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

Pisqueya is a first generation, woman-owned, Latinx-American Food Company. A premium line of sauces and seasonings that celebrates Latin culture and traditions. A taste of home, inspired by the gap in Hispanic Caribbean representation in the global food market. Our clean label brand is rooted in family, heritage, and a commitment to sharing the delicious flavors from a different part of Latin America – the Caribbean. In this way, through the universal language of food, we live out inclusion by expanding the rich flavor palette of America.

Every Pisqueya recipe originates from my own family kitchen, operating in Brooklyn since 1986 – the oldest Dominican restaurant in NYC. Immigrating from the Dominican Republic, my parents opened a luncheonette in the heart of Brooklyn. It is here where I spent most of my childhood years and where the inspiration to start Pisqueya was born. In 2011, a catastrophic fire destroyed the family restaurant that had fed the Brooklyn community for over three decades. Channeling the resilience of Dominican culture, this tragedy offered the opportunity to help rebuild and rebrand our family’s business. This fire also changed me. In that process of helping my family, I reconnected with my roots and witnessed the power of food. After 2 years juggling with my full time job, and after hours helping my family with the transition of the new and improved operations, I made the decision to leave my corporate job to carry on my family legacy and forge ahead with the flavors I grew up with in NYC – the authentic flavors that I did not see represented in the market shelves. Thus, Pisqueya was born.

Maritza, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Maritza Abreu and I am the founder and CEO of Pisqueya. Pisqueya was born from purpose. Not seeing the authentic Latin Caribbean flavors I grew up with in NYC represented in the global food space, inspired me to start Pisqueya. It all began at my family business – the oldest Dominican restaurant in NYC. It is here where I witness the power of food and community.

Authentic Latin Caribbean flavors are underrepresented in the food industry. The very ingredients that represent the vibrancy and culture of Latin Caribbean traditions have been replaced by low value, artificial flavors based on sugar and salt. We’re changing that!

The name Pisqueya [pees-keh-yah] honors my ancestors and their natural way of cooking. We source organic peppers and fruits from regenerative farms in the Caribbean to ensure that every bottle is packaged with the most authentic flavors, naturally, without any added fillers. We produce in small batches to deliver fresh taste and quality. Every batch is approved by me or a Pisqueya family member before it goes out and all our sauces and seasonings are packaged in glass to preserve its quality and reduce our carbon footprint. Pisqueya has a commitment to operate as an authentic, clean label brand rooted in family & heritage.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

As a first-generation American, I felt a certain amount of pressure to pursue a career path that would provide a sense of guaranteed financial independence. In other words, I understood the sacrifices my parents made to come to America and I didn’t want to take this for granted. It took a lot of courage for me to leave a corporate job in finance to start a business that would honor my creative gifts while also making an impact in my community.

It makes me proud to celebrate the authentic flavors I grew up with in NYC. I was naive to the world of CPG, but it was evident that our flavors were missing in the market and that representation was needed. I also knew that I was standing on the shoulders of mi Familia, my community, my culture and that this foundation of resilience, passion, determination, and vision would help me overcome any challenges.

Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?

As a first step, I decided to spend some time in the Dominican Republic to work on our supply chain and then I returned to the US in search of manufacturing partners. Everything was tested first in my family kitchen which still today is as our place for R&D. The clients at the restaurant served as my focus group to study the various packaging and it was my Brooklyn community who first opened its doors to Pisqueya.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://pisqueya.com
• Instagram: @pisqueya
• Facebook: @pisqueya
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maritza-abreu-3258263
• Twitter: n/a
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@pisqueya
• Yelp: n/a
• Soundcloud: n/a