Guayoyo Coffee House was founded in a small beach town in the northern pacific coast of Costa Rica. Guayoyo was established in February of 2019 as an opportunity to escape from the typical corporate life, start a meaningful project from the ground up, and ultimately express myself and put into action all the traits that I had learned in the corporate world, college, and life travels. Although this was my first gastronomic business venture, I’ve been indirectly surrounded by the coffee culture through my mother who has been employed as the manager for the accounting department in one of the largest coffee roasting companies in the greater Los Angeles area.

In the 3 and a half years that I resided in Costa Rica I successfully launched a coffee shop a block away from the beach, expanded the company from a three-men operation to a team of 12 employees, a self sufficient restaurant, artisanal bakery, and gastronomic venture with liquor license. Additionally, during my time the coffee shop provided jobs for Venezuelan expats as well as local Costa Rican workers, it showcased artwork from local artisans and artists, and maintained professional relations with neighboring businesses. Guayoyo was loved by its staff members, loved by its very frequent clientele, and loved by numerous social media platforms and search engines. Facebook, Google, and TripAdvisor all ranked Guayoyo as the #1 coffee shop in the area, and in July of 2021 Guayoyo was presented with the Travelers Choice Award which is only given to the top 10% highest customer reviewed restaurants around the world.
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A lot was learned from my Costa Rican experience, much of which will be applied to all my future business endeavors. As mentioned above, how we do 1 thing is how we do everything, with that in mind, it is not just about starting a business but also about building community, creating a positive lifestyle, generating a lasting impact, and loving the experience.