Zuleyma “Zuly” Gomez

CREO was born from a memory, but really, it was born from something much deeper in me: Love. A love for my roots, my culture, my family, and the generations of Creatives who came before me.

My mother was a Creative long before I ever had the word for it.

When she was young, she won year after year at our town’s Día del Niño festival for her creativity. She would take an idea from her imagination and turn it into something people could see. In her late 20s, when we spent a year in Mexico, my mother won first place once again.

Looking back at those photos now, I realize I was surrounded by this kind of creativity before I even understood what it meant.

I, too, was a Creative. 

When I returned to the United States, I presented to my classmates. I brought pieces of Mexico into the classroom to talk about our traditions, our art, and the things we create.

I was proud to share where I came from.

That stayed with me.

My mother continued creating throughout her life. After long hours of work, she would sit at her easel and paint flowers, memories, and moments that moved her. Painting was about expression. It was about her flow.

I remember one art showcase where her paintings hung on a wall for strangers to see. What I remember just as clearly were the price tags. She had to guess what her work was worth.

But to me, those paintings held something much deeper than a price. They held her story. Her memories. Her imagination. The way she saw the world.

That experience stayed with me because I realized how many Creatives are like my mother and her mother, for generations. They have the talent, the imagination, and the passion to create something meaningful, but they may not have the tools, resources, or business knowledge to know what comes next.

That is where Creo began to take shape.

Creo is more than a marketplace. It is infrastructure for Creatives. A place where they can share their work and their stories, connect with people who value what they create, and give their creations a life beyond themselves.

I come from a small town in Jalisco, where craftsmanship is part of everyday life. What I inherited from my family was more than a love for making things. I inherited a way of seeing the world.

That is the legacy I carry with me.

And that is what I want Creo to carry into the world.

Zuly