Turning Your Favorite Recipe Into a Booming Brand
From This Is Small Business by Amazon
April 14, 2026 · 18 min · Season 7 · Episode 100
About this episode
Alejandro Lopez shares his journey of turning a craving for the perfect Bloody Mary into a successful brand, Toma Beverage Company, highlighting challenges and lessons learned along the way.
What happens when a simple craving turns into a nationally recognized brand? For Alejandro Lopez, it started with brunch. Frustrated by inconsistent Bloody Marys at restaurants, he began experimenting in his own kitchen – searching for the perfect mix. What began as a passion project quickly turned into Toma Beverage Company. In this episode, Alejandro shares how he tackled product development and packaging challenges, why leaning into his Hispanic heritage became a turning point for the brand, and how selling on Amazon helped Toma survive and grow after he lost 60% of his business during COVID. If you’re thinking about starting a business or figuring out how to adapt when everything changes, this conversation is packed with lessons on resilience, authenticity, and building a brand that connects with people. Watch the full conversation on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@Thisissmallbusiness In this episode of This Is Small Business , you'll learn about: (01:31) — What if your best business idea starts with a craving? (04:33) — Do you really need to “go all in” or can you build slowly first? (06:48) — Why leaning into your identity is a risk worth taking. (12:34) — How Amazon can help…
People in this episode
Guest: Alejandro Lopez
Topics covered
- branding
- entrepreneurship
- product development
- Hispanic heritage
- resilience
- authenticity
Keywords
- Bloody Mary
- Toma Beverage Company
- entrepreneurship
- branding
- COVID
- Hispanic heritage
- resilience
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Toma Beverage Company, Amazon
Places: COVID
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