Ingrid LaVon Launches Tequila Brand That Creates Legacy And Empowers Women

Ingrid LaVon is a corporate executive and entrepreneur who released Geneba Tequila earlier this year. PHOTO PROVIDED BY INGRID LAVON.
Ingrid LaVon is a corporate executive and entrepreneur who released Geneba Tequila earlier this year. PHOTO PROVIDED BY INGRID LAVON.

Ingrid LaVon Launches Tequila Brand That Creates Legacy And Empowers Women

By Tia Carol Jones

Ingrid LaVon is a corporate executive and entrepreneur who is using her new tequila brand, Geneba Tequila, to give back to and empower women. The spirit designed for women was named after Ingrid LaVon’s mother Geneva.

Ingrid LaVon has been a corporate executive for more than 20 years, focusing on helping organizations build a successful workforce and a profitable company. While working in the corporate world, she has always had different entrepreneurial endeavors. She believes it is important to have more than one stream of income.

“This endeavor is more personal. It’s beyond just the financial aspect. It’s legacy time. It is time for us to do things in our community and for women, specifically, that we’ve never seen or done before,” she said.

Ingrid LaVon launched Geneba Tequila in February. When it went live on the website, more than 150 bottles were sold within the first 48 hours. The tequila was part of the pre-Oscars gifting lounge in Beverly Hills earlier this month. Already, it has been named one of the "Top 10 Black-owned Spirits Brands to Watch" by "The Spirits Business" Magazine.

Ingrid LaVon said she has been a tequila aficionado for more than 12 years. It started off as part of a health journey, while working out and trying to find things that were cleaner for her. In doing her research, she found out that tequila comes from the agave plant. 

Eight years ago, she told a friend she wanted to have her own tequila brand one day. Then, about two years ago, she mentioned to the owner of a Mexican restaurant that she one day would own her own tequila brand. Two and a half years later, after travelling with her husband to Guadalajara, touring the Delgado distillery, going to the agave fields and chopping agave, Geneba Tequila is available for purchase. 

“Tequila has been around for hundreds of years, and to have a little Black girl who was raised by a single mother … for me to be able to do something like this was not common,” she said.

Now, Ingrid LaVon wants the world to be able to experience Geneba Tequila, a premium tequila that is for women. She said she is super excited to be among the 1% of Black people and Black women who own a tequila brand. The mission is to empower women through the bottle, by scanning the QR code on the bottle, people can access classes and seminars.

With Geneba Tequila, Ingrid LaVon has been able to merge her corporate passion and experience to empower women. She said it feels like owning a tequila brand is something she had to do, because it was time to disrupt a space that hasn’t been easy for most people to get into. 

She said to get into the tequila industry is different, she had to be approved by the Mexican government. It meant she had to build relationships. She is glad she was able to go through the process, because she learned things she didn’t know.

Ingrid LaVon said that Geneba Tequila is different than other tequilas because it is really good and has an accessible price. There are two kinds, Blanco and Reposado. She is hoping to have a Mezcal. The Blanco is double distilled so that a woman could sip it from a wine glass. The Reposado is aged nine months so it can be sipped with a cigar. She said she is still learning things about tequila and has been enjoying doing so.

While Geneba Tequila doesn’t have any additives, Ingrid LaVon said not all additives are bad. Her goal was to create a clean tequila for women, so there are no additives in it. As a Black woman in the spirits space, she said that being new the reception is positive. She said she thinks the world is ready for diverse spirits. 

“I know there’s a lot going on in the world, but there’s just still so much good in the world. As long as you’re putting out a good product, you’re a good person, you have good intentions and the product is not just self-serving, and that it’s able to give back to communities, I think no matter who you are, you’ll be well-received,” Ingrid LaVon said.

To purchase Geneba Tequila, visit https://genebatequila.com.


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