WHITERIVER, AZ — In 2021, the United States Census Bureau released the results of a 2019 business survey that showed there are more than 24,000 American Indian and Alaska Native-owned businesses in the country.
More are expected in the coming years but there can be many hurdles to overcome to make this dream a reality.
ABC15 went to Whiteriver, Arizona, to talk to a couple who left the Valley to bring their coffee business to their community and who shared the struggles along the way.
Charmayne and Hugh Dawahoya are living the dream. They’re serving up java with their loyal team they call mixologists at their temporary location on the White Mountain Apache Reservation. It's an idea that started as a conversation in 2016 but became reality in 2019.
"That was always a dream to start a business. And then coffee kind of worked its way in there because that's something we just absolutely loved," Charmayne said.
She and her husband Hugh had been living in Chandler, working in the corporate world for years — but they were ready to take the leap. That’s when Bear Beans Coffee LLC was born. They started driving their mobile unit all over Arizona.
"We'd go as far as...Tuba City and Moenkopi, up there to the reservation. We’d go down to the Tohono O'odham reservation down south, just east of Tucson. We've been all everywhere in between,” Hugh recalled.
When it came time to open a permanent spot, they knew they wanted to bring their business to Charmayne’s tribal community in Whiteriver. Hugh is part of the Hopi tribe and says the tradition for them is to go live on his wife’s tribal land. So, they both were all in on making Whiteriver their home.
She said, “Ultimately, like, this is our comfort zone. You know, these are our people, this is where we vibe the best.”
But it didn't come without challenges. On tribal lands across the country, it can often be harder for small businesses like Bear Beans Coffee to get off the ground and running. They can often face more hurdles than larger corporations. Money and time are luxuries many small business owners don't have.
"A lot of these steps that we have to take here in the tribe are just more elongated, and they're a little bit harder to take those steps,” Charmayne said.
But the constant flow of loyal customers shows they are making an impact. And they're not only bringing great coffee to tribal land, but they’re also providing jobs to tribal members.
Charmayne explained, "You can't just move back to the reservation and get a job, you have to almost create your own opportunities. And it's a really special thing for us to be creating opportunities for other people, as an extension of that."
The Dawahoyas say they’re also teaching their team about business outside of the reservation. This way, if any member ever decides for themselves to leave, they’re armed with the knowledge they’ll need since procedures and work documents can be very different.
Now they say they’re close to getting approval for their permanent location on the reservation. They’re also working on a deal with retailer Wal-Mart and they plan to continue to drive their mobile unit all over Arizona.
They are scheduled to be in Phoenix on December 11 for the Pueblo Grande Museum's annual Indian Market.
To learn more about Bear Beans Coffee and upcoming events, visit Bear Beans Coffee online.
