A brief Coffee Table Chat | BUILDING FROM THE GROUND UP

One-on-One with Julieta Chan

Building Experiential Hospitality from scratch has been a dance between creativity and resilience for Julieta Chan. Over the past year, challenges have been invitations to innovate, shaping a brand rooted in authenticity and purpose.

Reflecting on this journey, Julieta highlights the importance of staying true to the brand’s essence, aligning every detail with its values, and fostering connections that prioritize people, planet, and community. It’s been about much more than building a company—it’s been about building a philosophy.

1. LOOKING BACK AT YOUR FIRST YEAR WITH EXPERIENTIAL HOSPITALITY, WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST UNEXPECTED LESSON OR CHALLENGE THAT SHAPED YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON THE COMPANY’S VISION AND OPERATIONS?

Challenges have been a constant—almost expected—when building a company from scratch. But there’s something beautiful about that. Each challenge becomes an invitation to create, to think differently, to spark new ideas. It’s been a deeply creative year. The biggest lesson? Attitude is everything. Learning to breathe, stay grounded, and keep a clear head in moments of uncertainty is harder than it sounds. But trusting the team and the process has made all the difference.

2. EXPERIENTIAL HOSPITALITY IS IN A UNIQUE POSITION AS A STARTUP REDEFINING OUTDOOR HOSPITALITY. OVER THE PAST YEAR, HOW HAS YOUR EXPERIENCE SHAPED YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT IT TAKES TO BUILD A BRAND THAT STANDS OUT IN THIS INDUSTRY?

I’ve realized that memorable brands aren’t meant to please everyone—they’re meant to stand firmly in their truth. Creating a brand is like shaping a living being with its own personality, values, and worldview. Every decision, every detail has to align with its essence. It’s surprisingly easy to drift from that core, and doing so risks diluting the purpose. This year taught me that building a brand—and fiercely protecting its soul—is an ongoing act of intention. I’d never done that before, and it’s been one of the most profound lessons.

3. IF YOU COULD SHARE ONE DEFINING MOMENT FROM THIS PART YEAR THAT REAFFIRMED YOUR DECISION TO BE PART OF THIS COMPANY, WHAT WOULD IT BE AND WHY?

It all comes back to values. The moment I sat with the creators and investors and we aligned on the deeper why of this work—recognizing people, planet, and community as equally valuable as profit, and as essential to the traveler experience—that’s when I knew I was in the right place. I’m investing my energy in something that reflects what I believe the world truly needs: impact over extraction, connection over consumption. That clarity of purpose is what anchors me here.

Coffee Table Chat with Julieta Chan | Building from the Ground Up

A brief Coffee Table Chat | BUILDING FROM THE GROUND UP

One-on-One with Julieta Chan