Once upon a time
Once upon a time, on a spring morning in March 2023, the sun was shining down on the Puerta de Alcalá, in Madrid. Close by, a beautiful garden was filled with many different, brightly colored flowers. In the background, the sound of animated chatter and laughter filled the air. There was a light breeze, and the shadow of the imposing Puerta de Alcalá in the bright, dazzling sun was enough to give you goosebumps… It was the perfect setting to enjoy a cup of coffee and some churros on the terrace of “Ramses” to plan out the rest of the day.
María Benita Cantos Carrilero met Mary Emerson
Mary Emerson, an American from Boston, was sitting there in her sunglasses, basking in the sun and texting her family to tell them all about the marvelous things Spain had to offer, when María Benita Cantos Carrilero, Spanish and originally from a town not all that far from Madrid, walked up and sat at the table right next to hers. When she saw her, Mary couldn’t help telling Maria Benita how much she loved her outfit, and, just like that, they struck up a conversation… From there, they casually moved on to other topics like fashion, artisans and Spanish brands. They even talked about work, and they found that they had many more things in common than they could have thought, including the fact that they both currently held top management positions in their respective companies.
It felt almost magical, as though they had been fated to meet. They were both enjoying the conversation immensely. María Benita realized that she had some time on her hands and, spur of the moment, decided to take Mary shopping around Madrid. They had an unforgettable day, full of fashion findings and memorable luxury experiences… And on that day, they became FRIENDS.
But there was much more to come…
... because Mary inspired Maria Benita to launch the company she had always dreamed of, and hence the ME in ME from Spain, which stands for Memorable Experiences, but is also a tribute to Mary Emerson (M.E.).
Charismatic Legitimacy
ME from Spain is built in the image of its founder.
María Benita Cantos Carrilero was born in the heart of La Mancha, the land of Don Quixote, into a family with very deep roots in that region. She was educated in Madrid, the capital of Spain, and in internationally renowned Business Schools such as UCLA and Bocconi. Her vast knowledge and awareness of MADE IN SPAIN products sets her apart as a first-class expert.
A different kind of girl
Ever since she was just a little girl, all María Benita could think about was fashion. Born to local entrepreneurs, she had very little exposure to the world of fashion at home, but she constantly dreamed of visiting her aunt Anita’s house in Valencia (emblematic city on the Mediterranean coast), where she sat for hours on end watching her aunt sew while she browsed through countless “Burdas” (a fashion and sewing pattern magazine that was all the rage at the time).
She was named María Benita after her grandmother, as used to be customary in most small towns in Spain. Although she wasn’t too fond of her name at first and did everything she could to shorten it (which is why almost everyone calls her Beni), over time she discovered that it was part of her heritage and her roots, which she is deeply proud of.
Pursuing her dreams
Not surprisingly, she considered becoming a fashion designer, but she soon realized that what she really excelled at was managing creativity.
In spite of this, she decided to join the family business, a company that specialized in decorative paints, where, over the years, she held different management positions, from Marketing to Finance. She is currently still a member of the Board of Directors.
However, María Benita’s love for fashion never waned. Her favorite designer, ever since she was 16 years old (in 1990), was Agatha Ruiz de la Prada, and she didn’t rest until she managed to embark on a joint project with her, which consisted in the creation of an exclusive line of licensed paints in 2013. That day, she finally merged her two worlds (her family’s decorating company and her passion for the famous designer and the world of fashion).
She never gave up on the idea of starting her own fashion-related business
In 2008, she had several meetings in Milan and Madrid with members of the Braccialini family (premium Italian bags), to set up a flagship store in Madrid (a project which fell through in the end).
During her years as a university student, she was her dormmates’ designated “personal shopper” and, as early on as 2010, she started saving documents on her computer with the idea of one day fulfilling her dream of setting up her own image consulting and personal shopping business.
Thanks to the book “Build Your Dream”, by Luis Huete, and under the expert guidance of José Luis Escribano, she captured a vision that, over the years, she transformed into a reality…
She studied in the best Fashion and Luxury Business Schools
In 2011, she decided to study an MBA in Fashion Business Management at ISEM, following which she became an Entrepreneurship Professor and Fashion Project Advisor at ESDEN, where she mentored projects in different cities in Spain (Madrid, Barcelona and Bilbao), Colombia (Bogotá) and Mexico (Mexico City).
In 2016, while she was living in the UK, she was reading “The Economist” one day in Bishop’s Stortford Library when she saw an ad and, right then and there, decided to do an Executive Master in Luxury Management (EMiLUX) at SDA Bocconi (Milan) and ESSEC (Paris) in 2017. The Master involved face-to-face modules in Paris, Milan, Dubai, Singapore and Mumbai and had a highly international approach, with students from all over the world. On the very first day of class, she started drafting a plan that included a detailed description of the mission, vision and values of her business idea.
A dream come true
But it wasn’t until she met Mary Emerson that she FINALLY decided to launch ME from Spain. “You regret the things you don't do, not the things you do.”
To be continued...
