International Women’s Day Story
March 8, 2022
Jenifer immigrated from Mexico to Langley nine years ago. She arrived with her husband and two children both under the age of five. In Mexico, Jenifer was a professional chef with a specialization in a French cuisine from training she obtained in France.
Upon arrival in BC, Jenifer studied English in the LINC program at New Directions English Language School while taking care of her kids. It is here that she met the Business Community Liaison from the Langley WorkBC Centre. When her children reached school age, Jenifer continued her English language studies in the evenings and began to work as a cook in a private daycare centre while they were at school. Although this was a good first step, Jenifer’s dream was to open a coffee shop. The Business Community Liaison provided Jenifer with ideas and support.
Through Jenifer’s hard work and commitment and with the guidance provided by staff at the Langley WorkBC Centre, Jenifer opened her coffee shop in January 2021! The shop is named K’ooben Café and is located at 20411 Fraser Highway. The business originally focused on baked goods, but now also provides catering services.
The road has not been an easy one. Jenifer opened her café right during the pandemic. What had been hard as a newcomer became that much harder; it was impossible to hire staff during COVID and so she and her husband worked non-stop while raising their small children. They never closed. Rather, they expanded from only cupcakes to sandwiches and offering catering services, hosting events, fundraising, and more!
Jenifer is now not a job seeking client of WorkBC Langley, but an employer client – hiring other WorkBC clients!
