Growing up in San Diego, CA, Sandra Lilia Velasquez was surrounded by nopal cactus. Early on, she was struck not only by the plant’s resourcefulness—in addition to being a nutrient-rich food, it can be mashed and sundried to form a textile akin to leather—but its resilience.
“It’s drought friendly and can survive anywhere,” she said. “My parents have had the same nopal in their yard for 20 years and it’s the gift that keeps on giving. You cut off a bit to eat and it grows back in three weeks.”
While she always admired the cactus, it wasn’t until 2020 that she thought to make it the foundation of a luxury beauty brand. During the pandemic, Velasquez, the former lead singer and songwriter for the Latin Alternative band Pisotolera, found herself unemployed for the first time in her life. As a single mom to a 13-year-old daughter, she knew she needed to create a more stable path forward.
“It was at that moment that I realized I could be doing the same thing I’d been doing, I could remain stuck, or I could build something new,” she said.
She created Nopalera from her Brooklyn kitchen, where she was living at the time, drawing on the same Latina influences that inspired her music. Aware that the oil extracted from the nopal seed has naturally hydrating properties, she used it as the foundation for her line of soaps, lotions, exfoliants, and essential oils. Her goal was to create a modern Mexican beauty brand that elevated a plant she long associated with the best of Mexican culture.
For Sandra Velasquez, every bar, scrub, and cream is part of a bigger mission: changing the perception of the value of Latino goods in the marketplace and inspiring others to stand in their worth.
“At Nopalera, our core value is ‘stand in your worth,’ because we believe our culture—our strength, richness and self-worth—is worthy of celebration,” said Velasquez. “I wanted to build something that celebrated all that without asking for permission or compromising quality.”
That phrase became a rallying cry in 2023 during her appearance on Shark Tank. After bootstrapping the business for several years and receiving multiple offers from the investor panel, Velasquez turned them all down, choosing to stand in her worth and pursue her own vision. It’s a gamble that’s paid off. Since launching, Nopalera has grown into a thriving seven-figure company.
By leveraging Amazon’s seller tools, we’ve been able to grow faster without needing to build out all the logistics ourselves, which is critical for a small but mighty team like ours.
Having an Amazon storefront has not only helped Velasquez reach new customers, but build the infrastructure internally to scale as a small business. By using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) to store inventory and handle picking, packing and shipping nationwide, she’s able to deliver products quickly and consistently. For a lean team, that reliability has been critical in maintaining customer trust while scaling. She also uses Brand Registry to safeguard Nopalera’s intellectual property and gain insights into how customers search for and discover her brand, helping her protect and strengthen its presence as it expands.
“Amazon has helped us meet our customers where they shop, build awareness and generate meaningful sales,” she said. “By leveraging Amazon’s seller tools, we’ve been able to grow faster without needing to build out all the logistics ourselves, which is critical for a small but mighty team like ours.”
For Velasquez, every bar, scrub, and cream is part of a bigger mission: changing the perception of the value of Latino goods in the marketplace and inspiring others to stand in their worth.