For many, fashion is more than just clothes to put on and look nice. It’s a statement and a lifestyle. But while the world of fashion is focused on day wear, Juliana Mesa realized that sleepwear was an area that was often overlooked by many of the major brands in the industry. So, being a lifelong fashion lover, she decided to take matters into her own hands by creating the unique brand Dolce de Amore.
Dolce de Amore is a Colombian company specializing in manufacturing sleepwear, leisurewear, and accessories. Based in Medellin, Colombia, Dolce de Amore currently has 69 direct employees with 700 indirect employees. Direct employees are given fair working conditions that welcome the labor code. In contrast, indirect employees include product chains from raw materials, even satellite workshops that the company uses to meet the demand for the product.
Juliana’s brand has been in the industry for more than 10 years, making its presence known with stores based in five of the main cities of Colombia—Bogota, Cali, Bucaramanga, Pereira, and Medellin. Dolce de Amore also has a consolidated distribution in Costa Rica and Puerto Rico, with sales in around 27 countries. With more than one decade in the business, the brand has continued to thrive in the fashion industry, increasing its income by 82% compared to 2019. Juliana speculates that the increase is the product of developing its digital channel, both on the website and service lines through networks that allowed a more significant impact on sales by expanding its commercial territory domestically and internationally.
Dolce de Amore’s success can be attributed to the hard work, experience, knowledge, and passion of founder and CEO Juliana Mesa. However, the brand would not have existed if she did not stray from her original plans. “I studied engineering at the university, but my passion was always design and fashion,” Juliana revealed. So, while studying, she decided to follow her passion instead. After conducting a market study, Juliana found that the sleepwear market was a neglected niche and came up with the idea to start her brand.
“I decided to start my own line of pajamas,” she shared. “It was not easy at first. I was making a few units and selling on orders until reaching a point where I started producing in large quantities, learning from the entire production chain and hiring the staff to grow the business on a larger scale.”
Juliana’s decision paid off as she would expand her company into a titan in Colombia’s fashion scene. In her role as the current brand director, she highlights the wonderful projections and desire for growth in the coming months. As sales have grown stronger, Juliana attributes the success to the collections and campaigns that have attracted customers from new market niches.
The company is looking ahead to the remainder of this year in 2021, as it has made efforts during the last quarter to reach the giant Amazon and compete with big brands, expanding its supply and conquering the elusive American market. They hope to implement the commercial strategies that allow them to establish an arm of the brand in the country and achieve advertising on strategic sites in large cities such as New York and Los Angeles.
“We continue to aim at the development of a concept that is positioned as a lifestyle, transforming the way customers experience the product and with the brand despite continuing in an extremely challenging environment,” she declared.
Juliana Mesa is enthusiastic about her brand’s growth as she foresees Dolce de Amore becoming a renowned company with outlets selling around the world.
Learn more about Juliana Mesa and Dolce de Amore by visiting her official website. Check out Juliana and Dolce de Amore on Instagram for more updates.
