Alvaro Luque grew up hearing about family law each day from his dad, who was a practicing attorney in Costa Rica. But he knew early on that the legal route wasn’t for him. After studying business and marketing at Universidad de Costa Rica, Luque launched his career at Scott Paper Co. then segued into the food and beverage industry, eventually joining tortilla giant Gruma in 1999.
Various roles took him to Venezuela and Mexico and, in 2010, Texas. Four years later, he took the helm of produce marketing nonprofit Avocados From Mexico. Here, Luque shares why moving to America has been key for his career, and how it’s easy to blend two cultures in Texas.
“I’ve always been a marketer. Ever since I was in high school, I was very outspoken. I always tried to lead people and think of themes and things. I was always a big fan of American culture and the U.S., so when I got the opportunity to move here, it was a dream come true. I knew that for the marketing I wanted to learn and implement in my career, this would be the country in which to do it.
“I was very excited from the beginning. It was not hard for me to understand how the country works or how the culture works—especially in Texas. In Texas, you can cross over very easily; you can be very Hispanic one day and very American the next day, and it works out. We’ve been able to grow, become Americans and have our American life, but still get super Hispanic when we want to. That idea of having the best of both worlds was unique and good for us.”
