Pop-up marketplace series aims spotlight at minority-owned businesses

ATLANTA - In the mood for a little shopping this Cinco de Mayo? A pair of local entrepreneurs is making it very easy to enjoy some retail therapy — while also supporting Latinx and minority-owned businesses here in metro Atlanta.

This Sunday from noon to 6 p.m., Hola Amiga Experience will host its second Hello Spring Artisan Market on the Green at Phipps Plaza, turning the space into a vibrant marketplace filled with everything from jewelry and beauty products to home goods and food. 

Each of the vendors featured in the market represent women-owned and minority-led businesses from here in the area, hand-picked by Hola Amiga Experience founders Eva Lester and Jazmin Guerrero. The idea? Give these small businesses a platform to reach larger audiences — and help local shoppers find unique, locally-made goods they can feel good about purchasing.

Lester and Guerrero know a thing or two about growing businesses; Lester is the founder of Gleam Eyewear, and Guerrero is the founder of Becalia Botanicals. Together, the duo founded Hola Amiga Experience as a way to support other Latinx and minority-led businesses. The Hello Spring Artisan Market Series launched last month, and continues with a third market event on June 9. Admission to the marketplace is free.

For more information about the Hello Spring Artisan Market Series, you can follow Hola Amiga Experience on Instagram here. And click the video player in this article to check out our exclusive sneak peek at Sunday’s Cinco de Mayo shopping extravaganza!