Turning Culture into a Business: Araceli DaSilva of Cultura y Corazón Boutique

What makes a small retail business stand out? For Araceli DaSilva, it is creating products that help people feel connected to home. She joins Jethro Jones to explain how she started Cultura y Corazón Boutique, a Spokane pop-up business rooted in Mexican and Mexican American culture.

Araceli shares the story of a customer moved to tears by a candle that reminded him of his mother's cooking. Behind that connection are practical business decisions: starting small, making products by hand, accounting for time and materials, and reinvesting sales.

What Spokane business owners can learn

• Build a clear identity. Araceli connects the scents, colors, vessels and display of her products to the cultures and memories that inspired the business.
• Start with what you can make and sell. She describes beginning with a small product range at local pop-ups and expanding through reinvestment.
• Price for the work behind the product. Hand-poured candles and customized bags require different amounts of time, materials and preparation.
• Pay attention to the whole customer experience. Shoppers describe her booth as welcoming and familiar, even when they come from a different cultural background.
• Understand the next growth hurdle. Araceli discusses the difficulty of establishing a sales history for financing and her goal of opening a storefront.

Connect with Cultura y Corazón Boutique

• Shop Cultura y Corazón Boutique
• Find the boutique on Facebook

Araceli also gives a shout-out to Kate Cooper for helping her get started. Her next goal is a brick-and-mortar boutique with a small corner for Mexican coffee and pastries.

Hosted by Jethro Jones of Optimization Doc. Discover more local business stories at Spokane Daily.