Building Nopalera on Her Own Terms

Name: Building Nopalera on Her Own Terms
Start: 2026-09-29T13:00:00-05:00
End: 2026-09-29T13:30:00-05:00
Location: Texas Public Radio

When: Tue, Sep 29 · 1 – 1:30 PM
Where: Texas Public Radio

From Shark Tank to San Antonio. In this fireside chat, Sandra Velasquez shares her journey on building Nopalera her way and why she bet on San Antonio. Sandra Velasquez went from a career in music to founding Nopalera, a modern beauty brand built around the prickly pear cactus and rooted in her Mexican heritage. Along the way she turned down two offers on Shark Tank, closed a $4M round co-led by Morgan Stanley and L'Attitude Ventures on her own terms, and moved Nopalera's headquarters from New York City to San Antonio. This fireside chat traces that journey. Her move from performer to founder, the confidence it took to walk away from a national TV deal, and the reasoning behind trading NYC for San Antonio. We'll also discuss what building Nopalera looks like now and what she'd tell another founder building at her stage.

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