Corona bakery supplies Wal-Mart

People around the country may soon be able to bite into the cheesy, sweet arepas - Colombian corn tortillas - sold out of El Gran Pan de Queso in Corona. The bakery, located at 101-12 43rd Avenue, has been upping its production for the last two and a half years and plans to team up with the national giant Wal-Mart, a name that usually strikes fear into any small business.
After attending a seminar at the Queens Hispanic Chamber of Commerce held in conjunction with Wal-Mart, the bakery’s owners, Colombian-born Carlos Altana, 48, and wife Luz, 49, decided to apply to become a supplier for the superstore.
“By helping these smaller businesses by doing business with us, it helps us better serve our customers . . . and it keeps jobs within the small business community,” said Mia Masten, director of corporate affairs for Wal-Mart. Masten estimated that Wal-Mart does about $11 billion in business with New York suppliers yearly.
“The baker in Queens, for instance in that particular market, there are customers who come from Colombia who want to have a taste from home,” she said.
When asked if the diversity program, which allows businesses like El Gran Pan de Queso to become suppliers for Wal-Mart, softens the image of the superstore, Masten laughed and described Wal-Mart’s roots as a “mom and pop” shop.
“The fact is small businesses have thrived where Wal-Mart is in existence,” she said.
Before El Gran Pan de Queso can begin its business venture with Wal-Mart, the Altanas need to install better machines, add to their current staff, churn out three times more than the 80 boxes they currently make daily, and move to a satellite location in Brooklyn.
For Claudai Aranguren, 33, who has worked in the bakery for six years, the change is thrilling. She pictures people sitting on Miami Beach, chomping down on the Altanas’ arepas.
“It’s so wonderful because we recognize that our product is the best in the market, and by buying it, [Wal-Mart is] saying that we are the best in the market too,” Aranguren said.