Deann and Colin Interview

Which is your favorite Diego’s product?

Deann: Our Lower Carb Wraps they are a good size and I always feel better having eaten my wraps with a few less carbs… and you can’t go past our Authentic Corn Tortillas!
Colin: Our Classic Wrap, it’s a good size to fit everything in and tastes great.

What is your favourite way to use Diego’s products?

Deann: I really love Tuna wraps with spinach and typically make Colin ones with sliced deli meats and salad as he’s not a big Tuna fan like me.. and for the corn tortillas, tacos, tostadas, home made corn tortilla chips with ceviche or as nachos the list goes on!

Who came up with the name San Diego Tortilla Factory?

Deann: My Mom I think said we should be the San Diego Tortilla Factory and we all just said of course that’s perfect.. I was born and raised in San Diego and Colin and I were married there so it made sense and we shortened it to Diego’s for our Brand and to answer the phone as it was so much simpler to say, “Diego’s can I help you!”

What were each of your roles early on in the business?

Colin: We each did a bit of everything, from production to invoicing and book work, in the early years I was still working at sea so Deann was doing everything while I was away. I would then come home and take over to work on machinery updates, process improvements as well as getting us certified in HACCP etc as we continued to grow.

What is one of the most exciting memories from when you first started the business?

Deann: Those very early days and making the first corn tortillas in 1995! OMG the smell and taste was amazing. My brother and I took them hot off the line and ate them with butter, lime, and salt! It took us straight back to Rosarito Beach and the foods we grew up with…. Another more very concrete exciting memory was finally nailing the recipe, packaging and artwork and distributing into Franklin’s Big Fresh and working with Chris Rowden and the team back in the early days! We weren’t making much money, but it was so much fun and such a buzz to make the product, deliver it, demonstrate how amazingly awesome the simple yet delicious corn tortilla was, and is still today!

Colin: Probably when we got ranging into Woolworths, we thought at the time we had hit the jackpot!

If you had any advice to someone just starting their business, what would it be?

Deann: Follow your passion and dreams; Remember you never know what’s around the corner, so Hope is your friend; Positivity Breeds Positivity; Share the adventure and Sometimes it pays to think outside the box!

Colin: When you have convinced yourself that yours is the only way to do things, that is when you need to reevaluate and even seek other advice.