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Andréa Homoya is the Founder and CEO of Ash & Elm Cider Company. With a background in sales, consulting, and management, Andréa handles the day-to-day operations of Ash & Elm Cider Co. She is particularly interested in growing the brand’s presence through distribution and sales strategies, along with coordinating all of the moving parts of a small business. Andréa grew up all over the world, spending her youth in Tanzania, California, and Singapore before settling in Indianapolis. She enjoys trail runs, cooking, reading, and taking care of her sons, Soren and Enzo. It’s your turn now, Andréa!
My Maven Superpower is … I can figure out how to do anything.
A fun fact about me is …I am kind of obsessed with the TV show “Survivor.”
Best book I’ve read lately is … Weirdly, Seth Rogen’s autobiography has stuck with me! I haven’t even ever done any drugs, which made up a lot of the content, but I really enjoyed it.
My first job was … Host at Ruby Tuesday. “Thank you for calling Ruby Tuesday 96th Street this is Andréa, how can I HELP you?”
The skill I most want to learn is … Sometimes I fantasize about quitting everything and trying to learn how to make amazingly beautiful and complex pastries.
My favorite nonprofit to support is … WFYI.
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Self-care habit I swear by is … I am a better, nicer, more well-rounded person when I exercise frequently and when I do a full skincare routine. Also, I love getting in bed at 7 p.m. and reading a book until I fall asleep.
I feel most confident when … I’ve gotten a really hard workout in, had a shower, and had coffee before my kids wake up for the day.
The best career advice I can offer is … Take big swings. Worst case, you miss.
Favorite purchase lately is … I’ve been slowly building up my Drunk Elephant skin care line.
My favorite local restaurant dish is … I rarely go anywhere except our own restaurant, but I’ve been to Kan-Kan Cinema & Brasserie twice and got the Shrimp Cocktail Two Ways both times.
The thing I’ve been binging lately is … We just watched “Yellowjackets.” It’s nice to get caught up in a mystery!
A Maven you should know is … Francesca Jarosz.
My pet peeve is … We get asked to donate cider to hundreds of nonprofits per year. I want to be supportive of local nonprofits, but I wish people understood and appreciated that being a small business owner is hard and giving away product constantly is rarely beneficial for us.
The thing I’ve achieved lately that I’d like to celebrate with the Maven community is … Growing our business to the size where it can support my entire family — a big deal after not taking a salary for three years!
What’s next for me is … Constant growth, regional cider domination, things like that.
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Stephanie Groves is the Executive Editor of Indy Maven.
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