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Alejandra’s Bakery sits in the quiet unincorporated neighborhood of Westmont in a bright ruby-colored building that has been a staple in the area for more than a decade.
The bakery’s name is in big letters, a reminder for community members looking for the shop between Normandie Avenue and 98th Street.
The bakery was founded in 2014 by Agustin Aleman as a result of a passion for making bread and understanding local cultures.
“You have to be a friend of the people,” Aleman said.
He migrated to the U.S. from Mexico in 1978 with a dream to create a business selling pastries. Decades later, his ambitions were fulfilled with the grand opening of Alejandra’s Bakery.
Aleman has worked with bread and pastries long before the bakery opened. He is determined to keep his South LA customers satisfied. In his mind, because customers from different countries buy from Alejandra’s Bakery, the pastries have diverse origins that create a space where all cultures are welcome.
“I don’t qualify by countries, I qualify by the taste of the bread,” Aleman said.
Pastries from the bakery include Mexican conchas, Guatemalan champurradas, Salvadoran quesadillas, and croissants.
The bakery also accepts special orders such as cakes for special events. Holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas and Three Kings’ Day are high-selling days for the bakery. Three Kings Day, in particular, widely celebrated by Spanish-speaking countries with Rosca de Reyes, or Three Kings Bread, is a popular item the bakery makes annually. It serves as a place where traditions come alive by the aromatic smells of bread, satisfying the eyes and noses of the everyday customer.
Aleman has been a hard-worker throughout most of his life, devoted to maintaining his business and standing out among competitors he doesn’t often worry about.
“I’m not competing with anyone,” Aleman said.
Aleman continues his efforts to keep Alejandra’s afloat, sacrificing his time to make bread for his patrons to enjoy. He said the diverse community he serves has actively supported him for years, and helps bring new customers to his doors.
Julio Diaz comes to the bakery “almost every day” for coffee and bread.
“It’s a place that I’d widely recommend,” Diaz said, adding that the pastries give him a taste of nostalgia from his home country of Mexico.
For Aleman, as long as his customers are happy, his job is complete and he couldn’t imagine doing anything else.