HER
With spare time and little work after the pandemic diminished her food and beverage consultancy, Kayla Castañeda found inspiration for her next move in an ice-cold drink she’s enjoyed since childhood.
Composed mainly of fruit, water and sweetener, aguas frescas catch the eye with their vibrant colors and provide refreshment on the hottest days. At Castañeda’s home in July 2020, the traditional Mexican drink prepared from scratch by her visiting mother-in-law also planted the seed for a new beverage brand: Castañeda wanted aguas frescas all the time, not only when her partner's mom visited.
“Then I decided, if I made my own company, I could actually do that,” Castañeda recalled. “And I could share a delicious and beautiful part of our culture.”
INSPIRATION
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Her Inspiration
Grandpa's early Influence
As a child, Castañeda drank aguas frescas made from the ripened fruit her grandpa brought home from the fields he worked in the Central Valley of California. Grandpa Ismael couldn’t stand seeing fruit go to waste, inspiring Castañeda’s company, Agua Bonita, decades later to use produce that is rejected by grocery stores due only to size and appearance.
Toyota Prius invited Castañeda to share her journey.