Supplying Sustenance
Age: 39
Chief Operations Officer
Organization: La Galera Produce and LGX Logistics
As a leading woman in the produce industry, Erica Vega has made her mark on La Galera – one of Chicago’s fastest growing Latino-owned companies. Her leadership and strategic planning have been the catalyst for change both in the workplace and in the community where she is committed to helping the fight against hunger.
Erica has been an owner of La Galera since day one when the company started as a rented room in a warehouse at the Chicago International Produce Market in 2004. She began managing the accounts receivable and accounts payable from her kitchen table. In 2005, she took on the role of office manager and spent the next 12 years growing La Galera into a strong produce powerhouse. In 2017, she took the position of chief operations officer and has continued to work to strengthen and expand the company. Under her influence, the company now owns multiple units in the Chicago International Produce Market and successfully services all of the Midwest.
In 2016 Erica realized that she needed to be in better control of her logistics and the timely arrival of her produce. With her customers’ needs at the forefront she decided to open up her own logistics company, LGX logistics.
When Erica became aware of a community of homeless people living in tents under the iconic 90-94 expressway bridge and within a mile radius of the Chicago Produce Market, she refused to ignore it. She has made it her team’s goal to buy food from her customers, and on a monthly basis deliver food, fruit, and water to those in need. Her team rotates in helping and they make drop offs at common homeless areas.
Words of wisdom: “You get what you work for, not what you wish for.”
