Introduction
As the founder of OjaLáb, I recognized the untapped potential of the Latinx community in the U.S., which continues to grow in both size and influence. With nearly 1 in 4 Gen Z Americans identifying as Latinx and the U.S. Hispanic population expanding rapidly, there is a significant opportunity for Latin brands to thrive. OjaLáb was created to bridge the gap between Latin American retail businesses and the U.S. market, fostering meaningful connections to support their growth and expansion.
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Brief
The U.S. Hispanic population represents a dynamic and youthful market, but many Latin brands face challenges when attempting to break into this space. Through in-depth industry research, we identified key barriers preventing Latin American brands from accessing these opportunities. OjaLáb was established to eliminate these hurdles and provide a platform for Latina-owned businesses to expand into new markets through strategic partnerships and tailored growth solutions.
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Solution
OjaLáb has worked with 35 Latin American brands across five countries, helping them enter the U.S. market through immersive brand experiences and digital activations. By leveraging a mix of IRL and online opportunities, we create authentic, culturally resonant touchpoints for Latin brands to connect with U.S. consumers. Our mission is to facilitate international business relationships that enable diverse, authentic products to reach wider audiences, enriching the U.S. retail landscape.
1. Deep-dive into a Two - Sided Problem
The project started when we discovered the complex process Latin fashion brands face to enter the US market by connecting with Colombian brands in the summer of 2023. After, we looked into industry research, case studies, and reports on global transactions across the global North and South. We found six main reasons why brands do not expand internationally:
On the other hand, the Gen Z Latinx community in the US lacks a cohesive cultural experience that fosters a sense of comunidad and connection with their heritage, with existing solutions not fulfilling this demand. The data below showcase the need for a bespoke experience that connects Latin Gen Z with relevant experiences that align with their culture:
Brands in LATAM
Latinx Gen Z Community in the US
Trade
Regulations
1.
2.
Market Research
3.
Cultural Adaptation
4.
Target Audience Segmentation
5.
Supply Chain, Logistics, & Delivery
1 in 4
Gen Z Americans is Latinx
58%
of Latinx are 34 and younger
$3.2 T
Total Latinx Purchasing Power
This dual-sided challenge highlights the need for a strategic solution that bridges the gap between Latin American brands' aspirations for market expansion and the cultural aspirations of the Latinx community in the US.
2. Brand Survey to Guide our Design Thinking Process
Brands in LATAM
We designed and carried out a survey to understand the needs and priorities for Latin brands to expand internationally, and map a user journey.
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We had 61 brands from across seven countries in Central and South America, and 5 product categories: fashion, coffee, home decor, healthy foods, and jewelry.

Brand Survey Highlights:

96%
85%
90%
20%
Founded/owned by women
Country-specific target audience
Know their
target audience
Have exported to the US
Key Finding:
Brands want a solution to capture the market and their target audience, while ensuring efficient logistics and operations.

Market Strategies
Compliance with Exports/Customs Regulations
Logistics & Operational Efficiency
Economic & Risk Management
Cultural & Political Adaptation
3. Sensemaking through Brand Interviews
We utilized the findings from the survey to pinpoint our target group of Latin brand owners, those who prioritized their market strategy and operational efficiency when considering to expand their business abroad. We then followed up with 10 of the Latin brand owners and executed user interviews to dive deeper into these pain points.
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We found how market strategy and operational efficiency have distinct meanings and entail different actions for the brands. The interviews showed the issues they cared about the most, and the primary pains Latin brands face when considering to grow their brand's global presence.
Definitions from Brand Follow-up Interviews

Market Strategy
Operational Efficiency
Brands in LATAM
helveti
Prioritization Matrix

Key Takeaway -
Latin retail businesses are looking for ways to compete in the US market through gaining a brand awareness and positioning, a buyer network, and identifying their target audience while being operationally efficient through risk reduction and cost optimization.

4. The Gen Z Latin Consumer in the United States
We conducted 22 user interviews with recently immigrated Gen Z Latinx individuals in urban US cities. To visualize our findings, we represented Gen Z as a taco with four parts: tortilla, meat, onion, and jalapeo.
This resulted in an empathy map for Gen Z Latinx in the US:

The Tortilla:
What Gen Z Latinx are surrounded by
Latinx Gen Z Community in the US
The Meat:
What Gen Z Latinx say and do

The Onion:
Gen Z Latinx thoughts and pains

The Spice:
Gen Z Latinx Passions and Gains

Key Takeaway -
Gen Z Latinx in the US do not feel represented by American brands and seek culturally-aligned and relevant experiences that give them a sense of home and belonging allowing them to build connection and community while living in the US.
5. The Redefined Challenge and Ideation
After having realized the issues both, Latin brand owners and Latin Gen Z in the US face, we arrived at the design challenge of:
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How might we address the Latin brands' challenges and build a strong market presence while connecting and building community among and with Gen Z Latinx in the US?

Focus Areas
*To select what features we would design and brainstorm for, we leveraged the prioritization matrix and focused on those that intersected the pains and gains of both: Latin brands and Gen Z Latinx in the US.
With that, we came up with OjaLáb, a transformative growth platform expanding Latina-owned retail businesses through meaningful connections with GTM opportunities abroad.
We are on a mission to facilitate relationships that fuel international businesses and that end up offering diverse, authentic products to customers around the US.

6. Prototyping the Experience
To test our product-market fit, we coordinated OjaLáb's brand launch event in December 2023, introducing the first-of-its-kind Latin holiday selling experience in Soho, New York.
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The digital invitation below:

We collaborated with 8 fashion, home decor, and jewelry brands from Latin America, pioneering an evening of experiential retail.
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Partnering with VOZ, the Brooklyn Fashion Incubator, LatinoMagazine, Promperu, and CroingAgency, we coordinated a memorable event for 100+ attendees. Featuring live music, Peruvian cocktails, raffle prizes, and a keynote speaker, we engaged our audience in an immersive experience.
Through strategic pitching and curation with the Brooklyn Fashion Incubator, we ensured a lineup of high-quality brands that resonated with our target audience. Our approach resulted in a successful event, setting the stage for OjaLáb as an innovative event collective shaping the future of Latinx community and retail in the US.

Promotional Video for OjaLab's Brand Launch and Prototype

Speech during Brand Launch/Prototype
OjaLáb's next event is a work in progress, with exciting updates coming soon in the landing page below: