Today we’d like to introduce you to Janet Bonilla.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Initially, the idea was born of a screenplay I wrote titled La Marielita, which depicts an authentic story about the Mariel Boatlift from an honest and accurate perspective. In May 1980, my parents and I came through the Mariel Boatlift exodus. I was six years old. The main driver for me was to tell a story unlike the classic, Scarface; one that didn’t focus solely on drugs and delinquency and that showed another side to an ongoing negative narrative that still surrounds the Mariel Boatlift today. Through words on paper, the story evolved into more than just wanting to prove a point. The significance of what that exodus meant became greater than the pain of rejection I felt in those early days after arriving. Moments like when I was taken by close family to a religious private school in Miami in hopes of enrolling me, and the school director refused admission because the parents, whose kids went to this school, did not want their children mingling with the “Marielito” kids. In those early days, we were considered a plague, and the movie character, Tony Montana, didn’t help our reputation. However, even after having written two books and five short films, one of which was produced in 2021 and co-directed by me, winning Best Directing of a Foreign Language Short at the Madrid Film Festival, it was still difficult for me to unravel and take-on my Mariel journey. It was like I was ok writing every other story, except for my own. Undeniably, the pain of rejection was still lingering inside of me, so, during those early days of the pandemic, very organically, I drifted toward my Marielita origins. While we were all forced to face ourselves within an expansive solitude, I wrote. Then, I just kept writing and also wrote a follow-up to La Marielita called Dandelion Seeds. The process was sad, beautiful and incredibly cathartic. I had finally purged the demons. By 2021, I was obsessed with having La Marielita produced. Every door slammed in my face. I sat with producers and directors, and it struck me that, to this day, these brilliant, intelligent, diversity-forward and creative individuals still couldn’t see past an inaccurate narrative. I kept hearing, “Janet, it needs more s*x, more drugs, more violence.” Basically, they were asking for a Scarface sequel. It was frustrating accepting that after I had finally summoned the strength to write my story, the ignorant perception persisted, but I gave myself the grace to accept that producing this film was not (yet) in the cards for me, and I pivoted in a whole new direction. As hopes of producing my Mariel story faded, something more powerful had emerged. I had the ability to create something meaningful out of something that had attempted to bring me shame. I was fixating on words instead of essence, and what emerged from that realization was a legacy. One night, after yet another disappointing screenplay meeting, I trademarked the name of my screenplay, La Marielita, and began the incredible adventure of creating a rum. The spirit is synonymous with Cuba and the moniker is a representation of my freedom. It’s truly the American Dream.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Being a woman in this male-dominated industry does possess its exclusive set of intricacies that are hard to ignore, but not impossible to overcome. That said, being a small brand in general has many challenges. Small brands must learn to navigate very treacherous waters. We are constantly surrounded by sharks. It is a very beautiful and creative industry, where we have the opportunity to meet some of the world’s most talented and creative masters of their craft, but it is also an incredibly dirty business–specifically for small brands. We are always clawing our way through the large conglomerates who own the heavily marketed and larger brands, and have mastered the art of manipulating and dictating what many restaurants, bars and clubs carry. There have been times where a restaurant or a bar loves our product, but bringing us in, or having a cocktail with our rum, would impede them from benefiting from privileges within the industry. Distributors also play a huge role in our success or demise. They will push the popular brands; the brands that have an astronomical marketing budget to play with because it makes everyone’s job easier. Another challenge is lack of transparency on labels. Rum especially is a perfect example of this problem. Age statements are in many cases misleading, hugely exaggerated or downright dishonest. There is an ongoing trend of placing the oldest aged year on the label of a “solera system” rum when in reality the oldest aged year stated on those labels hold the least percentage amount of aged rum, so labels that state “23 Years Solera System” are in reality very young rums blended with minimal percentages of a more mature rum, with added additives and, in some cases, upwards of 25 grams of added sugars to aid its taste. There are also play-on-words labels, like “25 Year Anniversary” or “Añejo Especial” etc., which tell absolutely nothing about how long the liquid has been aged for. The industry knows this, but the consumer doesn’t always know, and it makes for great marketing gimmicks and tactics to confuse the consumer into thinking they are buying a premium product when in reality there are just helping pay for a brand’s marketing budget. This is a prevalent issue that should to be addressed and closely looked at by alcohol regulatory entities. Consumers have the right to know what they are buying. Labels should state if there are additives or added sugars beyond aging. Nonetheless, we will continue allowing the quality of our product to speak for itself. I have never shied away from hard work. There’s a quote that says that nothing worth fighting for is ever easy, but I like to add that nothing meant to be yours is ever that hard.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
La Marielita Rum is an Ultra-Premium, True-Age spirit. Our rum is not a “solera system” process, nor is it a blend of young rums with minimal amounts of an older liquid. La Marielita Rum ages for a minimum of 18 Years in ex bourbon, American White Oak barrels, without any additives or added sugar beyond what naturally derives through the aging process. Although our company was founded in 2022, our distillery in Panama has been aging rum since the mid 80’s, making it one of the largest reserves of aged rum in the world. La Marielita Rum corporate offices operates out of Miami, FL, however, our entire production is done in Panama. We are distributed by one of the largest distributors in the world, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits. Right now, we are primarily distributed throughout Florida, however, through our partnership with Total Wine & More, we can also be found in New Jersey, Long Island, NY, and CA. We have been honored with several notable mentions, such as being named “Best New Rum in 2023” by Robb Report, but what we remain most proud of is the integrity surrounding our organization. We have managed to disrupt the rum industry by creating and launching a unique true-age, ultra-premium product, absent of marketing tactics and misleading soundbites. We have brought onboard like-minded people that care about ethical practice, honest delivery of information and product quality. We are currently working on the fourth production of our 18 Years Aged rum, we plan to launch another expression later on this year, as well as two more expressions by mid 2027.
What set us apart from the rest is the premium quality of our true-age rum, and our authentic brand backstory. Also as CEO and founder, I am the first immigrant Cuban-American woman in the world to have ever founded a rum brand. Not someone who runs a rum company, or inherited one through familial origins, but a Cuban immigrant woman who actually founded a rum company, starting it from the ground-up. At times, reconciling the skepticism–even within my own community–surrounding that simple statement carries some disappointments, but, after three years in this industry and well into my fifties, I’m learning to be more assertive and confident. Today, my response to the skeptics is: show me who the first one is, then?
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
The greatest risk we can take is to give into the fear of failing. This is something I try to remind my kids about. In particular, it was a huge undertaking for my husband, who had a very successful career with one of the world’s largest Financial organizations, to leave his stability and take on a project none of us knew anything about. When I came to him with this idea and somewhat of a business plan, I think he was in complete shock. He still might be in shock! To his credit, he never said it was impossible, he was never negative about what it was going to take, and he remains as supportive, determined and focused on success just as I have been. Of course establishing an alcohol brand has been a huge risk, but what drives us is giving ourselves the opportunity to push our limits beyond our comfort zones and learning how much we are capable of. In the process, we are teaching our kids through example that nothing is impossible if we are in a constant state of learning, growing, evolving, and prayer!
Pricing:
- $50-$60
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.lamarielita.com
- Instagram: @lamarielitarum
- Facebook: La Marielita Rum
- Other: https://robbreport.com/best-of-the-best/gallery/2023-botb-best-spirts-year-1234845978/botb_spiritsweb6/
