Sunday, November 17, 2024

Couple put their dreams on hold and turn to selling tamales

Brian Orozco and Teresa Morales are artists and now, two years into a global pandemic, they are also successful tamale vendors.

Three years ago, they were pursuing their dreams — Orozco was a theater actor and Morales, a painter — in Mexico City.

But everything changed when the COVID-19 pandemic started. Like many artists and performers, their incomes took a nosedive.

Orozco tried to squeak by with low-paid online performances, but pretty soon the couple were looking for new ways to support themselves.

They tried to start several businesses, including a coffee shop in Jalisco with Orozco’s brother, but nothing took off.

Candelaria de los Patos housing complex Mexico City
Brian Orozco and Teresa Morales got their tamales business started where they lived in the Candelaria de los Patos housing complex in the Venustiano Carranza borough.

Then, in early 2021, the couple decided to try their hand at selling tamales, using a recipe from Teresa’s family in Veracruz. At first, they sold the tamales around the neighborhood where they lived with Orozco’s parents. Teresa made the tamales and Orozco put his acting skills to work as the salesman. It was a hit, and they quickly sold out.

“It was very hard for us to see how after fighting so hard for your dreams, for music, for theater, for art, it all fell apart because of the coronavirus. And it was very difficult starting from zero in other things,” Orozco said.

The pair recently opened a sales location in the Anzures neighborhood, but have not forgotten their artistic dreams.

“I am determined sooner or later to start a theater company. I’ll leave my businesses in the hands of managers and dedicate myself to what I like to do,” Orozco said.

With reports from Reforma

Have something to say? Paid Subscribers get all access to make & read comments.
A Pemex storage facility with a Mexican flag

New payment plan will allow indebted Pemex to keep more of its revenue

1
The new plan will "cut inefficiencies, diversify energy sources and pay down debt while protecting output levels," Sheinbaum said.
Tara Stamos-Buesig poses with supporters at a rally

The ‘Naloxone fairy godmother’ helping prevent overdose deaths in border communities

0
In Mexico, naloxone requires a prescription and is not sold at pharmacies, making it nearly inaccessible to those who need it most.
A crowd wraps Mexico City's Angel of Independence in a tricolored banner, with a view of the Mexico City skyline in the background

Moody’s downgrades Mexico’s outlook to negative, citing judicial reform and debt

12
The country's overall credit rating stayed the same, a decision Moody's credited to the Mexico's resilient and well-diversified economy.