Vanessa Santos — Founder of Build The Dream · Keynote Speaker · Investor
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.
The most dangerous thing a woman can do is stop performing and start building.
I close the gap between the woman you’re performing and the powerful, wealthy one you actually are.
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. I led the world’s largest community for Latina entrepreneurs through acquisition. I’ve built and scaled what most founders never do, then asked why that number isn’t higher.
I don’t tell women to find themselves. I help them choose themselves.
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
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?
Inquire
Invite me to speak
Keynotes, panels, and leadership offsites on AI, culture, and the women’s economy. Tell me about your event — date, audience, format, and budget range — and I’ll be in touch.