The Gaviña family is coffee royalty. From farms in Cuba to the fourth generation now overseeing the daily operations of the largest minority-owned and family-owned coffee roaster in the United States, the Gaviñas are an American success story extraordinaire. Immigrant Francisco Gaviña founded the company in 1967 after purchasing a secondhand roaster and setting up shop in Vernon. Today, his granddaughter Lisette Gaviña Lopez is running the company, which is No. 19 on the Business Journal List of Minority Owned Businesses with $159 million in revenue in 2022. We asked her to share some insights about the challenges and opportunities of being a minority business owner.
Please tell us how your business was founded.
The Gaviña family has been in the coffee business for over 150 years. We started as coffee growers in Cuba with my great-grandfather, José Maria, and his brother, Ramon. My grandfather, Francisco Gaviña, learned from his father and later taught his children — Paco, Pedro, José and Leonor — about growing and roasting high-quality 100% Arabica coffee to make the perfect espresso blend. When the communist revolution took place in Cuba, my grandparents fled with their four children to Spain, and eventually settled in Los Angeles. Having left behind the coffee farms and roasting business in Cuba, my grandfather dreamed of working in the coffee business again. While working in a restaurant, Francisco Gaviña made contacts in the coffee business in Los Angeles and soon uncovered the opportunity to purchase a small roaster that belonged to Bob’s Big Boy restaurants. My grandparents purchased the roaster, and with the help of family and friends the roaster was dismantled, transported from Carlsbad and set up in an 1,100-square-foot leased commercial space located in the city of Vernon. It was 1967, and with a very small operation, the Gaviñas were back in the coffee business.
What’s the best aspect of having your own family business?
The…
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