Becoming a Chingona Trailblazer with Michelle Barrionuevo-Mazzini

Michelle Barrionuevo-Mazzini is an Argentinian-Peruvian creative entrepreneur from the Bay Area and the owner of two small businesses. Her first small business, MB Creative Co. is a boutique planning and design firm that has produced over 800 events both locally and abroad since its inception in 2004. Her events are creatively designed and seamlessly translated into an experience with depth and meaning for their discerning clientele. Many of their events have been featured in print and online publications such as Hola! Magazine, BRIDES, The Knot, Grace Ormonde, Marin Magazine, and Today’s Bride just to name a few. Amidst the pandemic, Michelle launched a second small business called CASITA MICHI. This California-based wellness brand celebrates culture through empowering and nostalgic candles, hand-poured with the planet in mind. With the lack of representation in the home fragrance space, she and her team set out to create a product that would inspire our community to practice self-care through intentional storytelling and culturally empowered phrases. In addition to being a brand that values sustainability and social good, they believe in the power of belonging through purposeful and intentional representation. In the Fall of 2021, CASITA MICHI became the first Latina-owned candle brand to debut at Macy's and their signature line of vegan coconut wax candles can be found both online and in 400+ Macy's stores across the U.S. They have been featured in USA Today, Hip Latina, Complex, NBC News, Refinery 29, Poderista, Good Housekeeping, Mujerista and Yahoo. In this week’s episode, Michelle shares her journey as an entrepreneur and how she invested in her creative worth. Throughout her life, Michelle has endured a ton of highs and lows - including a separation, the 2009 market crash, and the Covid pandemic. Through it all she persisted and has two incredible businesses that she uses to lift up the Latino community and her fellow entrepreneurs around her. Check out Michelle’s episode for an incredible story of strength through resilience and confidence in her creative self. Keep up with Michelle on their website and Instagram. For all Hella Latin@ updates, follow @hellalatinopodcast on Instagram and connect on LinkedIn. More at odalysjasmine.com. To learn more about your ad choices visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Podcast production for this episode was provided by CCST. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices