Business Profile: La Tortilleria is an authentic Mexican fast food restaurant,
manufacturer, wholesaler and distributor of fresh tortillas, nachos, tacos and other corn flour related products for retail sale to the public, and wholesale to the business sector including more than 25 restaurants in the Greater Toronto Area. Axel and Juan, newcomers to Canada from Mexico opened their doors in May 2008, and have since expanded the La Tortilleria empire to include a total of four locations and a distribution centre. Their two state-of-the-art tortilla-making machines, imported from Mexico are capable of producing 7,500 tortillas per hour.

Their Story: When asked, why they decided to go into the tortilla business, president and co-founder, Axel, says ‘we wanted to bring a little of Mexico to Canadians and Mexican expatriates’ showcasing the very best of Mexican culture and cuisine. They did their homework; saw a niche opportunity in the market place for freshly made low-fat corn products with no additives and no artificial preservatives. They sought financing but were declined by two banks. They approached CYBF, received a start-up loan, were matched with a mentor and received advice from CYBF’s Entrepreneur-in-Residence, who assisted with prelaunch coaching, business plan writing and leasing options for their tortilla
machine.

Both co-founders of La Tortilleria are active in their community. They are actively involved in Crea Mexico, a community organization dedicated to promoting commerce between Mexico and Canada. Axel currently serves as President-elect of Crea Mexico.

Short Quote:
“The business plan that we developed with CYBF’s Entrepreneur-in-Residence became a roadmap for the launch of our first restaurant and served as a blueprint for opening two additional locations in 2008.”
- Juan Roman and Axel Arvizu, La Tortilleria

Mentor Quote:
“The help we received from our CYBF mentor was priceless.”
- Juan Roman and Axel Arvizu, La Tortilleria

Canadian Youth Business Foundation
Canada’s Entrepreneur Gateway
The Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) is the ‘go to’ place for youth entrepreneurship. As a national charity, we are dedicated to growing Canada’s economy one young entrepreneur at a time. We look at character not collateral, when providing youth, age 18-34, with pre-launch coaching, business resources, start-up financing and mentoring, to help them launch and sustain a successful entrepreneurial business. www.cybf.ca