Business and Divorce: A Tale of Two Co-Owners

By Karla Rodriguez

Business owners know better than to bring any personal issues to work, but is that possible to do when you own a company with your former spouse?

Houston-based Buzzles Shaved Ice owners Darryl Garcia and Marytalia LaSalle say yes, it is. The two know the ups and downs of co-owning a business even after finalizing a divorce.

Photo from communityimpact.com

Together since their freshman year in high school, they were married for 13 years and opened their first Buzzles location after the birth of their second son in 2009.  As their business grew, their personal life was falling apart.

Although they were good together in different ways, LaSalle said much was lacking in their relationship.

“Our relationship was very strained by working together all the time,” she said. “We didn’t know if it was really going to be able to last while working together full time.”

Photo from Instagram buzzles_shavedice_

After making the difficult decision of going their separate ways, Garcia said separating the emotion from the work is what made it easier for them to continue handling Buzzles, co-parenting their two sons, and working together all at the same time.

“What are the odds that we knew at 16 how our lives were going to go?” he said. “We knew at 23 we were not the same people we were at 16, and at 33, we were not the same people we were at 23.”

The relationship probably would have been very different after their divorce if they had gotten married in their mid-20s, like other couples, Garcia said.

“Since we had been together since 16, we were very forgiving, something I don’t think happens with other couples who go through similar situations,” he said. “Neither of us had any anger.”

His ex-wife said she felt no resentment and thinks the key to making a business continue to grow is wanting the best for the other person.

“We came to an agreement to do everything fifty, fifty,” LaSalle said. “That’s worked out really well for us. We didn’t fight for one to have more than the other. We both wanted to have an equal share of everything, from money to duties within the business.”

Photo provided by Cyndi Alvarez.

Cyndi Alvarez, a three-year employee at Buzzles, said she and her co-workers felt some tension during the time the co-owners were separating, but that quickly changed due to the great partnership they had.

“They both continued to communicate with us just the same, even after they were separated,” Alvarez said. “In a way, they are still united, so we have this weird, cool modern family here at Buzzles.”

Alvarez said she admires her bosses for being able to continue co-owning a company they started together even though their personal lives are in a different place.

Photo from Instagram buzzles_shavedice_

“It’s not every day you hear of business owners still working together after they separate,” Alvarez said. “They are even opening a fourth location … so it takes a different kind of people to be able to do something as strong as that.”