Interview: ¡YAESTA! A Successful Family Business Who Understood Different Cultural Needs
When we approached the CEO of ¡YAESTA!, Mr. Francisco Menéndez to ask him for some time to chat with him about his company business Conservas y Congelados ¡YAESTA! little did we know the magnitude of ¡YAESTA! – especially its altruism.
We began talking with Francisco, as we friendly call Mr. Menéndez and asked him about the beginning of his company. How did the concept of ¡YAESTA! begin? We asked him. “The company started in Guatemala, as the department of canned and frozen fruits within Productos Alimenticios ¡YAESTA! S.A. in 1982. Then in 1995, we decided to separate the company for reasons of specialization and growth, and that is how Conservas y Congelados ¡YAESTA S.A. (Coco S.A.) was formed,” replied Francisco.
When did you start exporting your products, we asked? “We started by exporting nostalgic products for Nicaraguans in Florida, such as pinol, fresco de cocoa, pinolillo and others. Then we serve a community of Guatemalans with nance, pacaya, jocotes and other products. We served Salvadorians with parrot and frozen izote flowers in brine, among others. Our business has been to serve different market niches, developing the products that we knew were needed in the market at that time”. He continued saying, "This is the reason we decided to venture with products for the Mexican market, which are very similar to the Central American marketing products. In 2003 Mesoamerica Foods Corp. was born to better serve the United States. This is the company that imports and delivers to distributors our processed products in Guatemala, in addition to representing the most recognized brands in Central America.”
"Then in 2007, CoCoMex, a processing plant was opened in Puebla, Mexico. This is where products are manufactured for the Mexican market including pumpkin flower, huitlacoche, nopalitos and so many more."
He then recalled that in 1996, they exported by plane, about 30 to 50 boxes a week and today they are exporting more than 12,000 boxes per week in containers. They can pack canned or frozen fruits and vegetables, frozen fruit pulps, beans and even Latin American tamales. More than 96% of their production is exported to the United States, México and Central America, and most recently they started exporting to Europe; especially to Spain and Germany.
"We work our brands: ¡YAESTA!, De Primera, Vallemex, Macha, PePePancho and we also pack private brands”, he said.
What do you think is the reason for your success Francisco? "Understanding that from the beginning, we are Latin Americans but we each country has its unique ingredients and special dishes. This is the main reason for our success. We continue to focus on each country individually and develop specific products for consumers from those countries. This lead to us being selected by the Guatemalan Exporters Association (AGEXPORT) as winners of the 2007 Exporter Award, which was given to us by President Oscar Berger of Guatemala," he mentioned proudly.
Francisco Menendez, CEO of ¡YAESTA! tells us how his company has decided to support his community and help both children and adults to get ahead of their social problems by training them for reintegration into society, through their Foundation called "Operation Rescate" and also through the program called "Encadenamiento Empresarial."
FUNDACION OPERACION REASCATE
Vision: To rescue people in need, comprehensively restoring them to integrate them into society.
Objectives:
Instill Christian principles and values to improve their quality of life.
To rehabilitate people, so that they remain free of addictions.
Give them the tools to incorporate them into society.
History: The project began in 2005 with five students by its founder Giuseppe Teruel. In 2008, we had 95 pupils between primary and secondary school. In 2009 we had 125 students and that same year, we had our first two graduates with bachelor's degrees in computer science. In 2011, there were 200 students and the approval of the Ministry of Education was obtained and was officially recognized as a registered institution.
Today, we have a total of 295 scholarship students:
Pre-School and Elementary school: 188
Middle and High School: 63
Weekend Students: 50
Students are trained so they can visit children with HIV, nursing homes, and other activities in the community.
Contact Information Address: 28th Street 15-91 Zone 6, Colonia el Molino. Guatemala City Phones: +502.22540366 and +502.22883112 Fax: +502.22540366 Email: info@operacionrescate.org