Bushwick has been witness to a huge increase in the number of businesses in the past months – from bars and restaurants to galleries and pet stores. While this explosion gave Bushwick residents more reasons to hang out locally, it also raised many questions. Who actually owns these businesses, and who are these businesses created for? Do long-term Bushwick residents also get to benefit from the startup heat in the area or is this strictly recent “transplants” matter? We are very glad to inform you that many Bushwick businesses are owned by the Bushwick “natives” and are doing really well. Take Bushwick-raised Leticia Castillo and Carmen Valerio, who have recently opened their second business in the area – Owl Juice Pub on Wyckoff Ave.

Both Letty and Carmen are inspiring independent women in their forties whose friendship grew into a business partnership and continued to flourish. “We have known each other since we were 19,” Carmen says. “We became close on a trip to Bear Mountain,” adds Letty. “We sat together on a bus, and just started talking. I always say, I fell in love with her,” Letty laughs.

Carmen and Letty opened Café Central over 2 years ago. At first the ladies wanted a restaurant. However, the space they found on Central Ave was more suitable for a coffee shop. “Thank god we “only” opened a coffee shop…It is so much work!” says Letty. “We cut back a little but at first we have been working crazy hours there, and we both had jobs in addition. In fact I still have a job,” continues Carmen, who works at a city agency.