First Mexican hair care line at ULTA Beauty

María G. Ortiz-Briones, The Sacramento Bee on May 20, 2025

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FRESNO, Calif. -- Pilar García Bonilla had a dream and desire to help women like her who might be self-conscious of their curly hair and don’t feel comfortable being themselves because of their curls.

García Bonilla said she grew up thinking that straight hair was beautiful and sophisticated while curly hair was messy. She said something inside of her didn’t feel good and rejected her roots, which led to a personal journey of self-acceptance.

She told herself to embrace her curls and embrace her Latina essence.

Now, a proud Latina entrepreneur and curly-hair advocate, García Bonilla returned to Fresno, the city she called home for 17 years and where her two children were born, to launch her hair care brand, LATINA, the first Mexican hair care line to debut at ULTA Beauty USA.

“It’s history in the making and I am proud that is a Mexican, a Latina, who crossed borders and barriers,” said Dora Westerlund, CEO of the Fresno Area Hispanic Foundation. “She is leading the way. She is paving the way for other women.”

García Bonilla, who is from Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico, said the idea and dream for the hair care brand was born in Fresno during the COVID-19 pandemic. She founded LATINA in 2020.

Westerlund said García Bonilla came to the foundation with her idea of a soap bar for hair.

“She had the commitment, she had discipline, she had resilience in her. And I knew that she was going to make it,” Westerlund said. “I told her, ‘You have to dream big.’”

Westerlund said having her hair product line at Ulta is just the starting point of García Bonilla’s success.

As her company grew, García Bonilla moved back to Mexico two years ago to run her company, which is headquartered in Cuernavaca.

García Bonilla said she wanted to come back to Fresno to launch her line because “this city to me represents the land where the seed was planted.”

The Mexican hair care brand hit the shelves at more than 400 ULTA Beauty stores in the United States on April 25. Her brand has been featured in SEPHORA Mexico.

“One of her greatest dreams is to serve her community in this part of the world,” said García Bonilla’s brother and business partner, Victor García Bonilla, who believed in her dream and worked on the project together. “When we started LATINA, it was a great project, and today we are achieving it.

García Bonilla said sometimes the biggest obstacle for many Latina entrepreneurs is to take the first step and believe in themselves.

“Whatever you are dreaming, you can do it. Nobody can stop you when you really believe in something,” she said. “If you think you have a good idea, believe in that because it can be true someday.”

García Bonilla said the day before the official launch she stopped by the store in Fresno to touch her products and see her logo and the store’s logo together.

“I did it. I feel proud,” she said.

She thanked Fresno, friends, and the community for inspiring her to do something big that celebrates her Latina identity.

“This achievement is not just mine; it belongs to all of us,” said García Bonilla. “LATINA is powered by the women who inspire me every day. They are my engine to keep going despite any obstacle.”

Westerlund said supporting entrepreneurs like García Bonilla is “at the heart of what we do at FAHF, and it’s been inspiring to watch her grow and succeed.”

While in Fresno, García Bonilla served as the keynote speaker at the FAHF’s 9th Annual The Power of Women in Business Conference, where she shared her entrepreneurial journey.

“We are incredibly proud to have been part of Pili’s journey as she was getting started with her business,” said Westerlund.