{"id":78375,"date":"2025-07-20T16:05:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T16:05:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/78375\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T16:05:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T16:05:12","slug":"local-packaged-good-start-ups-share-wares-at-launch-sa-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/78375\/","title":{"rendered":"Local packaged good start ups share wares at Launch SA event"},"content":{"rendered":"

The library might not be the first place that comes to mind when you want a snack, but that didn\u2019t stop dozens of people from walking through downtown San Antonio\u2019s <\/strong>Central Library doors for a consumer-packaged <\/strong>goods showcase Thursday evening.<\/p>\n

Ten small businesses set up tables in Launch SA\u2019s <\/strong>first-floor space to showcase snacks, drinks, canned goods and healthcare products \u2014 all under the wide umbrella of consumer packaged goods, or CPGs.<\/p>\n

The event was hosted by Launch SA, a city-funded effort to support small business start ups, and San Antonio CPG, a volunteer group specifically focused on supporting CPG businesses.<\/p>\n

Its <\/strong>goal was to give community members and buyers a chance to see innovative packaged products and to allow the individual producers, many of them San Antonio-based small businesses, <\/strong>to network and share their goods.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a good opportunity for people who have been established and want to be established,\u201d said Katherine Rico, Launch SA\u2019s partnership manager. \u201cConsumer packaged goods are huge in San Antonio.\u201d<\/p>\n

Attendees ranged from those who were entirely new to Launch SA, like local school teachers Andr\u00e9s and M\u00f3nica Loya\u2019s chimichurri and preserves business, Sabor y Arte, to known quantities, like Andrea Ley\u2019s Olla Express Cafe<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"Rya Banda hands a sample of Olla Express Coffee to Ruth Navarro and Christa Luna at the Launch SA Consumer Packaged Goods Showcase at the Central Library. Credit: Vincent Reyna for the San Antonio Report<\/p>\n

Sabor y Arte were invited by a friend, said M\u00f3nica Loya, but had enjoyed the opportunity to network. The couple sells their goods on social media and at local farmers markets on the weekends.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea is to learn more about how to get involved in local business,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is our first time and we plan to continue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ley\u2019s business started in 2017 and has since moved into a brick-and-mortar location near downtown. One of the cafe\u2019s syrups is now sold at H-E-B.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cLaunch SA is a great resource for small businesses,\u201d she said, adding that it helps new business owners find a way forward. \u201cThey connect the dots. If they don\u2019t know, they are going to find it for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Helping businesses launch<\/p>\n

Rico said success looks different for each business. Some want brick-and-mortar <\/strong>locations, some want to be widely distributed across different states. Others want to stay mobile and local. Either way, Launch SA wants to connect people with resources and ideas to help get their ideas off the ground or grow into their next step.<\/p>\n

Many are just starting out, though.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe service everybody from all different stages,\u201d Rico said. \u201cBut we get a lot of, <\/strong>\u2018Hey,<\/strong> I have this idea and I need to start it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Launch SA is a city-funded initiative to support small businesses and is operated through a $1.7 million, three-year contract with Geekdom<\/a>, a downtown co-working and entrepreneurial space, in 2023. Launch SA\u2019s <\/strong>space was renovated for $1.3 million in 2013.<\/p>\n

Rico said anyone interested in the program can reach out over the phone, at Launch SA\u2019s website<\/a> or come to the first floor of the Central Library to talk in person.<\/p>\n

The exhibitors are largely part of a group that meets on the third Thursday of every month, when they can share and learn from each other and see speakers or experts who are brought in to provide advice.<\/p>\n

The program has produced several small businesses that are featured in broader markets, including finalists for H-E-B\u2019s Quest for Texas<\/a> contest, like Hess Street Foods and JD\u2019s Chili Parlor<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Diana Anderson, who runs JD\u2019s Chili Parlor with her family, said she came into the industry with the goal of making good chili and bringing people together. Launch SA taught her about the business side of things.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t really know much about the food industry. It opened my eyes,\u201d Anderson said. \u201cI\u2019ve certainly made mistakes along the way. When I do, I can come here and ask for help.\u201d<\/p>\n

JD\u2019s recently launched pasta sauces to go along with its chilis. Anderson sees the group as an opportunity for small business owners to continue to collaborate, support each other and find a market amidst competition from much bigger packing companies.<\/p>\n

Connecting to build economy<\/p>\n

Andrew Anguiano, a local business owner and the volunteer group San Antonio CPG\u2019s chair, <\/strong>said attention to startups can be narrow and tech-centric. He noted San Antonio\u2019s food scene and said packaged good producers could be successful here. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is really building economy,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re spreading something that we\u2019re good at in San Antonio.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are many connections between the groups of entrepreneurs. Ley, for example, serves on San Antonio CPG\u2019s board while also being a part of Launch SA.<\/p>\n

Anguiano added that when that connection is combined with education, it can spread throughout the community. Enrique Trevi\u00f1o works with his wife and son on Thoughtful Snacks, which produces air fried, chocolate covered chicharrones available at several local markets and online.<\/p>\n

He said he was able to get guidance on how to work with federal regulators \u2014 his family can now sell his product across the country.<\/p>\n

\"\"Sample of red velvet cake ice cream cone from Condelicious. Credit: Vincent Reyna for the San Antonio Report<\/p>\n

At Conedelicious<\/a>, Jeremy Zapata handed one of his baked cake ice cream cones to Fabian, a local customer. Fabian\u2019s eyes widened.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s good,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s really good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zapata has started to sell his novel cones in boxes online and is working with an ice cream shop in Helotes. He started coming to the Launch SA meetings after another community member suggested it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Zapata has figured out a way to bake cake \u2014 red velvet, chocolate, you name it \u2014 into an ice cream cone shape. Launch SA has helped with marketing and pricing, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI learn something every event I go to,\u201d he said. \u201cI try to go every month.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The library might not be the first place that comes to mind when you want a snack, but…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":78376,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5133],"tags":[5229,54171,54172,54173,54174,54175,54176,54177,7202,54178,7203,9207,358,54179,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969,20705],"class_list":{"0":"post-78375","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-conedelicious","10":"tag-consumer-packaged-goods","11":"tag-hess-street-foods","12":"tag-jds-chili-parlor","13":"tag-launch-sa","14":"tag-olla-express-cafe","15":"tag-sabor-y-arte","16":"tag-san-antonio","17":"tag-san-antonio-cpg","18":"tag-sanantonio","19":"tag-small-business","20":"tag-texas","21":"tag-thoughtful-snacks","22":"tag-tx","23":"tag-united-states","24":"tag-united-states-of-america","25":"tag-unitedstates","26":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","27":"tag-us","28":"tag-usa","29":"tag-wc-750-1000"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114886418376245877","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78375","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78375"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78375\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78376"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78375"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78375"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78375"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}