Vanessa Santos — Founder · Investor · Keynote Speaker
I build worlds where women become unfuckable with.
I turn the women the system underestimated into the most powerful people in it — through wealth, power, and presence, without breaking themselves apart.
I close the gap between who you were and who you’re becoming.
I started my first business at 13 and never stopped. At Gilt, I didn’t just scale the company to 120+ countries — I created a new category for retail: one-of-a-kind partnerships between brands and designers, and sales that broke the internet, including selling a car online when that was unheard of.
Six years driving global product at Mastercard. The world’s largest community for Latina entrepreneurs, scaled through acquisition. Only 3% of Latino-owned businesses ever reach $1 million — I’ve built and scaled multiple, then asked why that number isn’t higher.
I don’t tell women to find themselves. I help them choose themselves.
The women most underestimated by the system are about to become the most powerful people in it.
Where do you want to begin?
Choose your path
01
I'm a keynote speaker.
Keynotes on AI, culture, and the women's economy — proof-led, incisive, and built to expand the room. From global stages to leadership offsites.
02
I'm a founder & CEO.
I built Build The Dream — a media and lifestyle company at the intersection of the women's economy, technology, and culture.
03
I'm an investor & advisor.
I invest in women-owned companies and advise founders through the pivots, transitions, and decisions that don't have a playbook.
Check out the podcast
Letters from the In-Between
Some women don't fall apart. They just quietly outgrow everything they built.
Every episode is a letter. Written and read by Vanessa Santos — founder, builder, and the woman who chose herself at the height of everything.
Welcome to the in-between. You were always supposed to find it.
Dear Vanessa
Ask me the real questions.
Building, power, money, identity, starting over — the ones you can’t ask anyone else. I’ll answer with clarity and a reality check if you need it, no judgment — always anonymously, in an upcoming letter.
- Dear Vanessa, I scaled past my first $1M and feel more lost than ever. How do I know what's next?
- Dear Vanessa, I'm first-gen and my family doesn't understand why I left a “safe” job. How do I hold steady?
- Dear Vanessa, I built my business for freedom, and now it runs me. How do I get the freedom back?
The world
Build The Dream.
Honor The Human.™
The architecture was never built for women. So I’m building the one that is.
Build The Dream is the syndicate — where women build wealth and power together, with the community, capital, and culture the old rooms never offered.
- Community
- Capital
- Culture
Inquire
Invite me to speak
Keynotes, panels, and leadership offsites on AI, culture, and the women’s economy. Tell me about your event and I’ll be in touch.