By Kathy Feist
On February 15, Benjamin Hernandez and his wife Marina Rivera opened Grandview’s second grocery store.
Viva Latinos Market, located at 1505 Main St. is a mini market. Its quaint, tidy space is filled with a vast array of products from Central America and a few homemade items delivered warm from the oven.
Though small, the store contains fresh produce, including plantains, papayas and nances, colorful packages of snacks, a variety of bottled hot sauces, fresh and packaged tortillas and sweet breads, instant coffee, refrigerated beverages, medicinal teas, toiletries and even bedding..
Most of the products are unique to El Salvador, Honduras or Guatemala. Some are from Mexico.
To the average gringo, a trip to Viva Market is a trip to an exotic world.
To the native Central American, it is a nostalgic trip back home.
“We have nostalgic candy from El Salvador that you could only find at the carnival,” he says.
Another candy recalls life in El Salvador.
He holds up a bag of mint gum. It brings back memories of two-hour bus rides from his home to the city. “Not many people in El Salvador have cars,” he adds. This particular brand of gum was available for sale on the bus.
Certain brands common in El Salvador or Honduras can only be found at Viva Market, he proudly points out.
Even various shampoos he sells will dredge up memories of life in Central America.
Hernandez and Rivera are both from El Salvador. The couple also own a clothing and jewelry store on Blue Ridge Boulevard.
“We thought it was time to have a little grocery store in Grandview for all Hispanic people in the area,” Hernandez says. He and Rivera live only seven minutes away where they raise their young family in a growing El Salvadoran community.
Prior to becoming business owners, both worked in the fast food industry. Hernandez says he learned the value of hospitality from working at McDonald’s and incorporates it into his own businesses. “I like to treat people well,” he says.
This is most apparent with another service he offers–money transfers. The average monthly salary for El Salvadoran workers is $500.“This makes it easy for people to transfer money to their families in another country,” he says. “They can even pay their bills from here.”
Viva Latinos Market is open Monday through Saturday 9 am to 8 pm.
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