owner was really big into construction, whereas I’m more about water damage and mold,” she says. “And so construction is kind of a by-product of the emergency services we provide.” Humber says she doesn’t really take a lot from the business and that has helped during lean times. “Surviving through the Tubbs fire, Kincade fire, COVID, this inflation, these wars—all of these things have just put a lot of pressure on small businesses,” she says. “I just have this thing about my employees and I try to give to them before giving to me,” Humber says. “I have a very good culture of people who just want to work hard, do right by others and learn.” She and her employees give back to the community, which she says is really important to her. “I volunteer my time to coach sports and volunteer within the community and so do my staff.” She says one of the big benefits is how much her sons are learning about what it’s like to be a business owner and a leader.
Beronica Perez had worked at Jacob’s during her high school years, when it was called Pizzeria Capri. [Photo by Duncan Garrett Photography]
town,” she says. “He was ready to, you know, move on—and he’s like, ‘Oh, my God, Beronica, you are the perfect one to take over here.’” They began discussing the business in more detail and “then it happened,” she says. In 2021, Perez and her husband became the owners of Jacob’s Restaurant. “I really love what I do,” Perez says. “We bought Jacob’s right in the pandemic and a lot of people were telling me, ‘Beronica, you are very brave to buy in restaurants right now.’ But I’ve been in Sonoma for so many years that I know the restaurant industry in Sonoma— and I know the people as well.” Perez says that when she was thinking about buying Jacob’s she sat in the restaurant and watched. She saw lots of people coming in, sitting by the windows and others were enjoying their meal outside and she says she just got a good feeling about its ability to survive. “This restaurant has been known for so many years,” she says. “When you see people coming into a restaurant it’s because it’s a good business. So it was a great opportunity. I never had a fear.” She says she also had faith that the pandemic wouldn’t last forever and then things would go back to normal. “[Business] is still on the low side right now, but everything goes away, you know,” she says. Meanwhile Perez says she’s been watching the restaurant scene and listening to customers and this gave her the sense that a new breakfast restaurant would do well. In March of this year, she and her husband opened Verano Cafe. “It’s a breakfast place here in Sonoma, where Animo used to be,” she says about their new venture on Sonoma Highway. “It’s really nice,” she says. “It’s a small restaurant and everybody likes it and it’s been very successful. It’s been only like a little over three months, but I can see people really enjoying it and they keep coming back. We are super busy and everything is good.” Right now she’s still being careful about labor costs, but says she’s paying employees well. “We’re a team,” she says. “Because I’ve been on the other side, I always want my employees to feel that they are like a family, you know? And I pay them good, because I also want to keep them.” When she’s giving advice to other prospective entrepreneurs, she always recommends they do something that they know a lot about and that they enjoy. “Everybody has the chance to be their own boss,” she says. “You can start little. You don’t have to start big. Just the experience, it’s going to make you stronger. It feels good when
“My kids have a really good understanding of the real world, because I share with them the highs and the lows of business,” she says. “I think it’s given them a perspective that’s going to help them be better human beings and adults.”
Bravo Restoration is at 399 Business Park Ct Unit 518 in Windsor. Call 707-625-7425 or visit bravorestoration.com.
Beronica Perez, Jacob’s Restaurant in Sonoma In 1995, Beronica Perez moved to Sonoma from Guadalajara, Mexico. She was finishing high school and found herself a part-time job bussing tables at Sonoma’s Pizzeria Capri Ristorante, owned by Jacob Begorgis. After finishing high school, Perez was taking classes at Santa Rosa Junior College and still earning money in the local food-service industry. In 1999, she took a job waiting tables at Maya restaurant in the heart of downtown Sonoma. “I knew I was going to make more money for sure, because it was on the plaza and that was what I was looking for,” she says. In 2001, Perez met her husband, Carlos Rubio, when he moved to Sonoma from Bogota, Colombia. They both worked at Maya and, after more than a decade of hard work, they became part owners in 2014. “We both were in the office and in the front,” Perez says. “I was more in charge of all the employees, but I was also helping in the office.” She describes the jump from server to owner as “very different.” “When you are a server you work hard, but you really don’t know yet how it’s managed,” she says. She says it was a great experience where she was able to learn a lot about business and running a restaurant. In 2019 she and her husband also became part owners of La Hacienda Mexican Grill in El Verano, before divesting themselves from the business in 2020. Meanwhile, Perez’s former boss, Jacob Begorgis, had renovated the kitchen and front of the house at Pizzeria Capri, expanded the menu and reopened in 2018 as Jacob’s Restaurant. Perez had stopped at Jacob’s to have dinner and Begorgis was there. “We always see each other in Sonoma, Sonoma is a small
June 2024
NorthBaybiz 35
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