Courtesy Photo/Jonah Goldberg
On Oct. 19 UTRGV Athletics partnered with Tio Pelon Salsita Inc. to launch the Vaquero Especial Salsa.
With the Vaquero brand growing, UTRGV Athletics saw the opportunity to expand the university’s brand by creating a Vaquero salsa with a local Texas salsa company.
Vice President and Director of Athletics Chasse Conque discussed the growth of the Vaquero brand, and how the salsa is another product to grow with.
“You go back to the approach we took with Los Vaqueros , and our partnership with 5×5,” Conque said. “We said it then, and we continue to say it, it’s a consumable space. A space where we really want to build for our athletics program. We have so many things that we do in athletics and a lot of people would probably ask ‘Why are you dabbling in this space?’ It’s really been a goal of ours for years. So, to be able to now launch into this space with salsa just made a lot of sense.”
Tio Pelon Salsita Inc. is owned by two Valley natives, Founder Oscar Perez and Co-Founder Noe Molina. The company is located in San Antonio Texas and it took off in 2015 in Perrez’s 90 foot square apartment.
They partnered with UTRGV Athletics after several meetings, and extended networking. Molina talked about the process it took to be official partners with UTRGV Athletics.
“They got excited about our product, us being from the valley, one of us being an alumni,” he said. “With the launch of the football team coming up and just trying to stir up more excitement around the athletics division and around the brand. [They] approached us about collaboration on a product that had a story.”
Telling a story in their salsa is what Perez likes to create in Tio Pelon’s products. Vaquero Especial will have a medium roasted jalapeño and ‘chile piquin’ taco-style taste. Perez talked about the ingredients used in the product.
“You’re going to find something that we don’t find in many salsa’s that are currently [in] grocery stores,” he said. “It’s a chile that we all know, and it’s called ‘chile piquín’, and that just brings out the spice in any sauce. It also has a very nice roasted jalapeno flavor to have a really nice tan color.”
Both UTRGV Athletics and Tio Pelon’s Salsita Inc. took this partnership opportunity to grow and network both brands.
The first launch for the salsa is yet to be announced, but when it is launched it will be available at the Edinburg and Brownsville university bookstores.
You can also order the Vaquero Especial at Tiopelonsalsita.com when available.
This is the one and only Kevynne Aleman for Vaquero Radio.
