Today we’d like to introduce you to Cyd Marie Santiago.
Cyd Marie, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’m 35 years old and a proudly Puerto Rican girl. Since I was a young girl, the fashion world has been part of me. When I was like 10 years old, my parents took me to modeling classes and I even participated in a teen beauty Pageant. Great experience! Then, while doing my bachelor’s degree in communication and public relationships, I worked at different retail stores. From clothing, Italian shoes, accessories, etc. At one point, I had with a friend our own shoe boutique. Learned a lot from the process and the whole experience of managing a business. Also worked with a clothing a jewelry designer from Puerto Rico, Lizet Miró. Another great experience! Then, Nordstrom hired me as their personal stylist for the new store in Puerto Rico. I was working there for the past 3 years after Hurricane Maria. After that, and all the devastation at the island, they offered me the opportunity to move to Miami and work at the Aventura Mall store. Couldn’t be more happy to work for such a great company
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I learned with all the experiences that I had in my life so far that life will bring you challenges and obstacles. But is only through that process that we learn and become better at what we do. For me, moving here to Miami to continue with my work wasn’t easy. At that moment, Puerto Rico was in the middle of the emergency that Hurricane Maria brought. Leaving my family and friends wasn’t easy. I felt awful, plus personally, I was going through my divorce process. So, it was chaos in every aspect of my life. But I’m a believer that everything happens for a reason, for a good reason. You just have to “keep swimming “
What should we know about Nordstrom? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I work at Nordstrom as a personal stylist. My job is to make every shopping experience easier. I specialized in women’s wardrobe. I can help people put together a whole new wardrobe, pick the perfect outfit for any event or simply keep them informed of new trends and how to incorporate them in their everyday life. As a company, we want to provide the best customer service, and we definitely do. If you can’t or don’t want to come to the store, I can be your virtual personal stylist! We go the extra mile for our customers
On my social media, I tried to reflect my everyday life, talk about trends (shoes, handbags, clothing, accessories, makeup, etc.) and show different ways to put together an outfit.
For good reason, society often focuses more on the problems rather than the opportunities that exist, because the problems need to be solved. However, we’d probably also benefit from looking for and recognizing the opportunities that women are better positioned to capitalize on. Have you discovered such opportunities?
Well, for the kind of work I’m related to (fashion industry) I think women are well positioned. From fashion models, designers, creative director, retail buyers, media, we are at every step of the process and usually very well positioned.
Contact Info:
- Address: 19501 Biscayne Blvd
Aventura, FL 33180 - Phone: 786- 527-5033
- Instagram: Myshoes_myself_and_i
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