‘A Love Letter to Sister Friends’: How Toya Banks Turned Grief Into Purpose Through Tequila
MONTECITO, Calif. — “I’m a widow from the South Side of Chicago… this is something built strictly from the heart.”
That’s how Toya Banks describes the journey behind Hermanas Amigas Tequila—a brand whose name translates to “sister friends,” and whose foundation is rooted in love, loss, and resilience.
“There are sisters, there are friends, and there are sister friends,” Banks said. “This is my love letter to my sister friends who are closer than any brother.”
Banks’ path into the tequila business didn’t begin with ambition—it began with grief.
Within just three years, she lost her brother, her husband of 18 years, and her mother, all while raising her young daughter. The weight of that loss, she says, was overwhelming.
But she wasn’t alone.
Her closest friends stepped in, each supporting her in deeply personal ways. One moved in with her for two months. Another cooked dinner every Sunday. One made sure her daughter got to school, while another showed up simply to make sure Banks got out of bed and faced the day.
Together, they helped her survive.
“Do I still cry? Do I still grieve? Yes,” Banks said. “But tomorrow is a new day and the sun will shine again.”
In the midst of that pain, the women created a ritual—Friday nights spent together, sharing conversation and tequila. What started as a small way to cope became something more meaningful.
“It was our way of gathering, our way of being together, to laugh a little—to bring some normalcy back to me,” Banks said. “And when I saw that bonding over tequila brought us even closer, I said—we made it our own.”
That realization sparked an idea.
Banks began building what would become Hermanas Amigas Tequila, a brand inspired entirely by those moments and the women who carried her through them.
She calls the tequila a “love letter” to her sister friends—but the sentiment goes beyond the bottle.
After launching the brand, Banks wrote a personal letter to the women who stood by her side—one she says still brings her to tears.
“No matter how many times I read the letter, it still makes me cry,” she said. “Because it’s my life. And they loved me so much—they wanted me to win. They wanted me to come back to life.”
Now, Hermanas Amigas Tequila is reaching a major milestone. This week, the brand officially hits shelves at Pavilions in Montecito—a full-circle moment for a business born from heartbreak.
As her story continues to resonate, Banks hopes it encourages others to lean into the power of connection and community.
“This is bigger than tequila,” she said. “It’s about sisterhood. It’s about healing.”
And above all, it’s a reminder that even through grief, light can still be found—sometimes in the people who refuse to let you go.
