.png)
Yamacu is a West African fusion food & beverage company that specializes in locally handcrafted all natural fresh ginger drinks and seasonal meals, led by founder Salimata Bangoura. After breaking into the food business in her early years, going on to launch Yamacu. In a recent Boston Globe interview, the Ivory Coast raised entrepreneur explained, “I started my cooking business when I was 7 years old. I’m one of nine children, and I grew up in a house where there were at least 15 kids at all times. We all had a morning and afternoon allowance. The little entrepreneur in me realized: That’s money!”
We at Ujima are so excited by their acceptance of our invitation to join the UGBA and share their enthusiasm around exceptional business practices. Joining the Alliance is a rigorous process that involves compliance with our 36 Good Business Standards.
We see Yamacu do exceptionally well in the areas of:
Good Local Jobs: 100% of Yamacu's production team lives within 10-15 minutes walking distance from CommonWealth Kitchen and Yamacu's Roxbury location.
Commitment to Employee Ownership: Yamacu is working with the Harvard Transactional Law Clinic to make a portion of the company available for employees.
Supplier Diversity: For catering gigs, Yamacu outsources hot sauce, cookies, cupcakes, coffee, spices from their close network of Black businesses and larger BIPOC community.
Workplace Democracy: At Yamacu, all of the different teams, regardless of skill and educational background are part of the decision making process.
"Salimata has committed to working towards [the] full health of her workers and has taken steps towards looking at a profit sharing plan for employees," said Community Standards Committee member, Luis Cotto.
Let's all welcome Yamacu to the UGBA!