Committed to Service: Judith Perez’s Growth with the Maddox Leadership Institute
By WESST | February 27, 2026 Originally from Las Cruces and now based in Hobbs, Judith Perez has been with WESST since 2023. She initially served as a Bilingual Business Consultant and has since been promoted to Women’s Business Center Director. In 2025, Judith was selected to participate in the seventh cohort of the JF Maddox Foundation’s Maddox Leadership Institute (MLI). The Maddox Leadership Institute is a nine-month leadership development program designed to strengthen
Affordable Solar and Local Nonprofits Celebrate Launch of Statewide Community Solar Projects
By WESST | February 26, 2026 After years of planning following the launch of New Mexico’s community solar program, Affordable Solar is now powering up projects across the state. On February 26, Affordable Solar and its nonprofit partners gathered to celebrate five community solar projects now online, with a sixth expected by the end of the month. Together, these projects represent 30 megawatts of solar capacity, providing clean electricity to homes and organizations statewide
WESST Refreshes Brand
By WESST | February 18, 2026 In case you missed it, we revealed our new logo at our 11th Annual Silver Soiree in October 2025 and have been softly, and intentionally, launching since. In 2025, we were directly impacted by funding shifts and the physical footprint of our organization evolved. Our commitment remains unwavering, as our WESST's mission remains the same, to serve as a home to entrepreneurs. Our refreshed brand signals our continued evolution and commitment to a th
Last Call Kombucha
Santa Fe, NM Kiana Estevez has always been inspired by her summers growing up in the Dominican Republic and loving the drink, kombucha. This led to launching her own business. “I determined that now was the time,” says Kiana. “I reached out to every available start-up resource I could find in Santa Fe. I had met with a WESST team member at different events and learned more about the organization, and the connection was made.” Kiana had been making and selling her beverages l
Blessed to be a Blessing Farms LLC
Chaparral, NM Daniela Lizarraga first heard about WESST through local entrepreneurs in Las Cruces who had spoken highly of the support they received. She came in for a consultation in June 2024 to get some guidance on how to move her business idea forward and make her LLC more active. At the time, Daniela had already created her business, Blessed to be a Blessing Farms, registered in New Mexico and Texas, and even built her website, but she had yet to make a sale. “I needed
ValidSync
Albuquerque, NM In 2025, Solomon Gbara first learned about WESST through Jordan Tate, owner of Creative Duke and WESST Incubator member. Solomon was interested in learning more about credit, who to speak to, and was referred to Melissa, WESST’s Loan Operations Officer. As a UNM college student and young entrepreneur building his own business, ValidSync, Solomon wanted help in establishing an LLC and taking care of his credit. He was able to successfully set up his LLC with t
Leading with Intention: Valeria Olave on Her Leadership NM Experience
By WESST | January 23, 2026 With nearly a decade of experience in the banking industry, Valeria Olave joined WESST in 2023 as Program Director of our Albuquerque Women’s Business Center (WBC). Under her leadership, WESST’s Albuquerque WBC earned the 2025 National Certificate of Excellence from the Association of Women’s Business Centers (AWBC) and was featured in the first ever AWBC Media Spotlight tour in August 2025. Valeria recently gradu ated from Le adership New Mexic
Sandia Pet Products
Albuquerque, NM When Veronica Fuller’s former boss was selling her wholesale product business, Sandia Pet Products, she came to WESST after a referral from a friend to explore her options. At the time, she didn’t have the funds to purchase the business, but through consulting and training, WESST and Veronica worked together to realize her path to entrepreneurship. Veronica’s main challenge was accessing the capital she needed to purchase the purchase. Through WESST, she rec