LYNN — In 2020, when her daughter Chanelle decided to purchase a 23andMe kit, Silvia “VIA” DeLeon had no idea she would be entering a whole new world and business.
VIA was born during the Guatemalan Civil War, and her birth-mother, Carlota, who had escaped from her abusive husband, had to make the decision to give up her daughter. VIA was brought to an orphanage where her mother was promised that her daughter would be kept safe and cared for. At almost 7 years old, VIA would be adopted.
She began her journey as an artist and fashion designer in the United States, becoming an established name before starting a new business venture: coffee.
The DNA testing kit would connect VIA to her biological family, and for her birthday in October, she would make the trip to her home country and reunite with them, promising to continue visiting. There, she also found out her family owned a coffee farm.
VIA said COVID-19 helped her coffee company grow.
“People couldn’t go to their local coffee shops. They started to brew coffee at home,” she said. “Even though my coffee is a little bit more expensive, it’s $30 a bag for 1 pound, if you do the math, you’re saving. If you go to Dunkin’ Donuts or Starbucks every day and spend $2, $3, $4, while mine is $30. That’s $1 a day for an 8-ounce cup.”
She explained that her coffee blends are different.
“We take a little bit from Saint Marcos, where the coffee comes a little bit from Antigua. We take from different parts, but we bring it back to the mainland, which is Saint Marcos,” she said.
Currently, four flavors are available: Mayan Warrior (vibrant citrus undertones with a crisp finish), Mayan Jaguar (rich chocolate flavors with hints of toasted nuts), Mayan Power (rich chocolate undertones with a balanced, smooth finish), and Mayan Cardamom (coffee and cardamom). Each one represents a part of DeLeon’s culture and always goes back to her Mayan roots.
VIA said she couldn’t answer the “what’s your favorite flavor” question because each one was like her child.
She said that she tries to only have coffee stored for a month.
“I’m trying to help people understand that a lot of companies buy tons of it. Then they roast it here, right? After they roast it, they package it. Then, it gets distributed to their cafes, or it’s put in K-Cups. By the time you open it, you’re the fourth or fifth person after that coffee has been taken out of the environment,” she said.
She said her coffee goes from the farm to the bag, and that buyers are the first ones to open it up in that process.
VIA also noted that her family farm has been passed down for generations, and that they have about 300-400 years of experience in roasting.
“Here (in the U.S.), we’re trying to figure out where we’re going for college. There, you were born into the farm. It’s like, ‘This is what you’re going to do.’ The little kids, they don’t work on it, but they can tell you everything about the coffee, and they’re 10 or 11,” she said.
VIA said that the coffee in Guatemala is so good that countries like Brazil and Colombia get their coffee but put their name on it.
She also said that she wants to inspire people to take the leap and open up a business. She wants to highlight e-commerce and that you don’t need a brick-and-mortar to be successful.
“You have to find a product, you have to find the demand, and then you go and sell it,” she said.
VIA said that she wants to pay tribute to the Mayans and help show that Guatemala is a beautiful country with good people. She also wanted to emphasize that the people of Guatemala are often exploited by companies that underpay them for the work they do, and that she always pays them fair wages.
“When I do these events, people always think I’m a worker, not the owner,” she said. “If you ever go to the supermarket, you’ll notice that none of the companies actually have a face. I put my face on it because I wanted to show what a native woman, an indigenous woman, looks like,” she said.
She also wanted to note that if any cafe or restaurant wants to buy coffee wholesale, her email is [email protected].
VIA has grown her business through hard work, family, her determination to pay homage to where she came from, and wanting to provide coffee that “makes people happy in the morning.”
