NOMINATED BY GRACE MO-PHILLIPS, WOMEN’S BUSINESS CENTER
While Maine might not jump out as the place to find good Colombian food, Maiz and its owners Niky Amaris and Martha Leonard are proving that assumption wrong. The couple met ten years ago in Cartagena, Colombia, and in 2017 they decided to bring their shared love of Colombian food and culture back to Martha’s home state of Maine. Starting out in the Public Market House incubator space in Portland with a small investment, they have been seeing gradual growth and expansion in the past few years.
With the help of CEI’s Women’s Business Center, Maiz was able to move into its own brick and mortar location in Portland within two years of first starting up. Even with the disruption of the Covid pandemic and the dramatic impact on the restaurant industry, Niky and Martha were able to keep growing Maiz. Thanks to their effective management and the assistance of an SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan, Maiz was not only able to stay open, but continue investing in growth and support of their community. With demand for their delicious arepas and empanadas continuing to grow, Niky and Martha decided to open a second location in Brunswick in 2022, as well as participating in five farmers’ markets spread from Scarborough to Boothbay. The expansion into farmers’ markets reflects the efforts Niky and Martha have made to local and fresh ingredients, with locally grown corn ground in-house, and with future plans to grow their own corn for the restaurant.
If maintaining and growing a restaurant by 30% a year in the shadow of the Covid pandemic wasn’t impressive enough, the way that Maiz has stood by its values makes that growth even more impressive. Even in 2020, during possibly the most stressful time to own a restaurant, Maiz partnered with the Portland Public Schools to provide culturally appropriate groceries to students and their families during a time when students couldn’t rely on school lunches. In 2023, Maiz repeated this support when many Maine schools were closed following the tragic shooting in Lewiston and many people were sheltering in place. Beyond these efforts, Maiz also contributed $1 from the sale of each specialty cocktail in 2023 to the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project, recognizing the role that the organization has played in assisting many of their employees as they made their way to Maine from around the world.
With a constantly growing platform for the diversity of the new Mainer community, and a delicious introduction to Colombian culture for established Mainers, Maiz has quickly become a staple of the vibrant Portland food scene. In recognition of their rapid growth and incredible support of communities across Southern Maine, the SBA is happy to name Maiz as the Maine and New England Minority Owned Small Business of the Year for 2024.
