Focaccia Banquetes y Eventos is a company that prepares banquets for social and business events, canapés, box lunches, coffee break service and event coordination that was founded at the end of 1998, with the idea of offering gourmet banquets and with the purpose of offering International Cuisine in the city of Aguascalientes. Its owner, Marcela Gonzalez is a graduate of the Bachelor's Degree in Administration and Marketing of the 1996 generation and today she shares her story with us:
"The idea of creating Focaccia was because since I was a child I have liked to flatter and make people feel good through biscuits or dishes that I prepared. I liked that whatever the visitors or guests needed was taken care of, I grew up in a party environment and in my house it has never been complicated to be a "host".
My grandfather had a vineyard and every year the "pisa de la uva" (grape treading) festivities were held, the blessing of the harvest and any reason was good to organise a gathering. When I was little I loved to read and look at the different recipe books that my mother had, some with photos, others in colour, others very old with notes from my grandmothers. I knew I enjoyed everything related to cooking.
I studied Management and Marketing and I wanted to go into the restaurant industry, so I had the opportunity to study in Vancouver at Dubrulle French Culinary School where I began my preparation to enter this wonderful, changing, exciting and revolutionary world of gastronomy. So I did my internship in a catering company, Peak of Catering, and I was amazed with the challenges of catering: planning the menu, developing the logistics, getting the staff and equipment necessary for the execution of the event, finding suppliers, etc.
The name Focaccia refers to an Italian bread similar to a pizza; in some recipes you get a fluffy and airy bread with a varied topping which can be chilli flakes, rosemary, salt grains, caramelised onion, etc., and other recipes lead you to get a thin Arab type bread (pita bread), and I loved it, so I didn't hesitate to call my business "Focaccia".
Focaccia was born at the end of 1998, with the idea of offering gourmet banquets and with the purpose of offering international cuisine in the city of Aguascalientes. At that time, there were no shops that easily offered imported raw materials, so getting some supplies or ingredients was complicated. We have seen the complete development of this niche of the food industry.
We started in an uninhabited house that we gradually transformed into what is still today the "Cocina Matriz", with the installation of industrial ovens, a kettle, a blast chiller, and hundreds of trays and inserts. We also started with the acquisition of a vehicle suitable for the transportation of food, a closed vehicle that would allow safe transportation. I started by giving cooking classes to my first employees, teaching them culinary techniques and introducing them to different and new ingredients. It was a period of "trial and error" with a lot of observation and lab-type notes.
Starting a company is a period that nurtures you and gives you the opportunity to develop many relationships with many people; finding reliable suppliers that allow you to be sure that the product is the best they can provide and keeping customers over the years is an "asset" that is a source of pride.
Entrepreneurship is an important ingredient in our lives and comes with an endowment of tests and challenges that requires us to always go the extra mile, to exceed 100%, but the satisfaction is infinite. The idea of entrepreneurship can be developed, but some of us have the entrepreneurial chip from a young age. It is also important to note that business becomes a precious entity that we are passionate about; sometimes it can prevent us from making objective decisions, we get attached to it and we want to keep it forever, so we must be alert, attentive and willing to recognise when our business idea works or not.
The human and quality training I received at Universidad Panamericana has allowed me to develop as an entrepreneur but always taking into account the people I surround myself with. Effective communication is of utmost importance, having the freedom to express ideas and be critical in the search for excellence. The result we are always looking for is "a successful event" in which all the elements are combined to achieve the maximum possible at each point. In my case, being a Panamericana graduate has allowed me to surround myself with great people, excellent professors, classmates and colleagues from other generations in which a bond of total support develops. Undoubtedly, Universidad Panamericana has opened many opportunities in my personal and professional life".
