Meet Rebecca Lago: Owner & Co-Founder – Ginger & Juice Bar

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rebecca Lago and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rebecca, what habits do you feel helped you succeed?
One adjective I know people use to describe me is “organized” and that is spot on. I am meticulous in everything I do. That being said I am also open-minded to pivoting and changing directions when the plan at hand is not proving successful. When my sister & I decided to open a business together one thing we knew was that our plan would be complete and well thought out. However, what we didn’t know was that 18 days after we opened our first location we would have to temporarily close our doors due to the unexpected world-wide pandemic. My habit of planning my work & working my plan helped me to open up a business just shy of 7 months after I left my 14 year career in the beer business but what really kept Ginger & Juice Bar alive was the ability to pivot when COVID-19 hit. Once Ginger & Juice Bar closed its doors it was still important to keep our mission alive and be able to continue to offer a healthy alternative to fast food even with our lights off. This is when we launched Smoothie Sistas, a live and pre-recorded segment where the community from all over the country (and beyond) could tune in to watch episodes of how to make smoothies at home and why they are so healthy to add to an everyday diet. 

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My mother was in sales for a good portion of her years in business and she used her skills to benefit herself professionally but also to help with volunteer efforts to raise money for many different campaigns! Those skills seemed to really set in with myself and my two younger sisters as we all went into careers that involved sales in some form. I did inherit my organizational skills from my father but did not choose a career path in Biochemistry and let him shine in that field! My career started after I graduated from the University of Arizona with a major in Marketing and a minor in Communications. One semester before I had graduated I landed a job with The Boston Beer Company and went on to work for that company for 14 years as a Sales Representative, District Manager, National Account Manager & then the Brand Sales Manager for a local subsidiary brand, Concrete Beach Brewery. It was there that I found a love not just for selling beer but building a brand from the ground up. I found myself loving building the brand creatively versus just trying to sell the brand to different channels in the trade. I had always wanted to have a place of my own or a brand of my own so the skills I learned from managing that brand have been crucial in our success in launching South Miami’s newest juice bar! Our juice bar is filled with delicious options for the whole family including a kids and dog menu. We also have an awesome vibe which plays (no pun intended) into music and arts with our fun hip hop menu names to the artistic presentation of the menu items and the bar itself.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Only a weekend…that’s tough as there is SO much I love about this city!! I’d definitely hit up a beach or two! I happen to love Key Biscayne’s Bill Bagg’s beach (I was engaged, married & later hosted my baby shower there so it’s safe to say I love that park). I also love Matheson Hammock when I’m with the kids. Speaking of Matheson Hammock, their newest restaurant and a HOT spot to eat in Miami is the new Red Fish Grill by Chef Adrienne and it deserves that recognition! I’d also recommend checking out Wynwood to hit up the brewery scene and some awesome restaurants like KYU and Lagniappe. We like to stay pretty close to home most of the time in our somewhat small city of South Miami and love to dine at Mi’talia, InRamen, East Thai & Charcoal Indian. Our friends just introduced us to an awesome cocktail bar across from the University of Miami called Mamey Miami and that instantly became a crowd fav with their delicious passionfruit liquor spritz.  The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d dedicate this SHOUTOUT to my husband, Mark Lago. Mark is a very driven individual who has really excelled in so many ways. His determination to better himself and work his way up in his career and professional path really drove me to want more out of mine! Also, without his support (financially & emotionally) leaving a career after 14 years with a guaranteed salary, benefits & let’s not forget paid time off gave me the ability to reach for a long time goal of mine to open up a business of my own.

Website: www.gingerNjuicebar.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gingernjuicebar/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gingernjuicebar/
Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/ginger-and-juice-bar-miami
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0d2LoCR8EsQHtzQVbuNcjQ