By Joselina Rodriguez

Women Leading Rum, the exclusive platform dedicated to recognising and connecting women within the rum industry, is pleased to announce the launch of a new phase in 2024, with the mission to empower and support women involved in this prominent sector. The women who are part of WLR, the companies and sponsoring brands will be key to the launch of this new phase.

Larissa Arjona, Executive President of Women Leading Rum, said that through this new phase, the women will not only support each other through training, but will also continue to be academically trained through workshops and mentoring to enhance the value that each of them gives to the world of rum.

“Our vision is to build a strong community where women in the rum industry support each other, share knowledge and promote recognised female leadership within the industry. We will achieve this through training, workshops, congresses, scholarships, and specialised mentoring by experienced professionals, all within a premium programme,” she said.

According to Arjona, this new phase of empowerment seeks to consolidate confidence among women so that they can develop their skills and actively participate in the decision-making process of the company they represent. 

She took the opportunity to invite all women involved in the rum industry to join Women Leading Rum in this new phase of empowerment and connection. 

Pillars that sustain

Within the rum industry, the 2030 Agenda plays a crucial role in empowering women through several of its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Four are the goals that underpin Women Leading Rum:

1. Quality education: it will offer educational programmes and training in the rum industry and facilitate access to educational resources and online events by leading women in the industry.

2. Decent work and economic growth: promote employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for women’s economic growth within the world of rum or spirits, through a world-class professional network.

3. Reducing inequalities: develop specific programmes to reduce inequalities and challenges faced by women in leadership roles.

4. Partnerships to achieve the goals: collaborate with organisations, companies and brands to promote equality, diversity and establish strategic partnerships globally to share resources and amplify the impact of the programmes.

According to Arjona, by adhering to these goals, Women Leading Rum actively contributes to building a more inclusive, just and sustainable future in the rum industry, aligning with the vision and principles of the United Nations 2030 Agenda.

Educating is empowering 

The new empowerment phase of Women Leading Rum promises to conquer the rum industry, through a novel programme for CEOs, VPs, Directors, Brand Managers, Commercial Managers, Master Blenders, Brand Ambassadors, Bartenders, rum enthusiasts, women professionals in the Wine and Spirits industry, etc.

“All women, organisations, companies and brands that collaborate in the fulfilment of our objectives within inclusion, diversity and equality are welcome,” Larissa emphasised.

She also pointed out that this new phase includes a Membership Programme for women and companies, which includes the participation of women in exclusive events in the United States (The Rum Fest) and Spain, mentoring, training to connect with experienced professionals, access to educational resources, exclusive events and bootcamps, access to premium networking and employment opportunities or scholarships with brands and distilleries, as well as awards, recognition and visibility within https://therumlab.com/, one of the most recognised platforms in the rum industry.

“Being part of Women Leading Rum will be a real honour, because we will revolutionise the knowledge and empowerment of so many women in the industry. We will give more visibility to their work, provide concrete opportunities to learn, grow and lead, and thus contribute significantly to their professional development” said Larissa Arjona.

About the President

Larissa Arjona is Panamanian with Spanish nationality. She has lived in Spain for more than 15 years. She is a lawyer with a master’s degree in law, and for the last few years she has been in charge of communications for the Ron Abuelo brand in international markets.

In addition to being a proactive person in the rum industry, she works to empower women in the industry, women who hope to work in an equal opportunity environment. She is happy to do this.

To find out more about this new phase of Women Leading Rum visit https://womenleadingrum.com/  or write to joselina@empresasfh.com