Hermana y Hermano highlighted women-owned businesses in celebration of Women’s History Month.

President Natan Gomez, a senior biotechnology major from Irapuato, Mexico, said this is the first time their club has the Women for Women event, which took place March 27. 

“I feel like especially students were unaware of this and were unaware that many of her peers have a business,” Gomez said. “We have seen organizations before who have done expos and we wanted to do one specifically for this month.” 

Cindy Gomez, secretary and senior business administration major from Jonesboro said the club put on this event because they wanted to show support for women during Women’s History Month. 

Jyra Meredith, a sophomore animal science major from Little Rock, owns a small business called Beaded by Janae. She sells waist beads, a type of body jewelry people can wear to express themselves, lose weight, or more. 

Meredith said anyone can wear waist beads. She makes removable waist beads, stretchy waist beads, permanent waist beads, anklets and bracelets. 

Tatyana Herrien, a first-year biology student from Bryant, Arkansas, tabled at the event, selling her homemade car air fresheners. 

Herrien, owner of The Lavish Creation, said she started making air fresheners with her mom last year after she saw a tutorial on Pinterest. 

“We just made them for fun to start and then people started wanting them so I just made a little business,” Herrien said. “I do have to go home to make them since I do live on campus. It can become time-consuming but with the help of my mom, it makes it really easy.”

Riley West was tabling for Healthwear Inc., a local small business her mother owns that sells accessories like key chains and hair ties, scrubs and medical-themed tumblers and clothing. 

West, a senior management major from Paragould, is the media and marketing coordinator for Healthwear Inc. 

West said she goes to small business expos to meet people and recruit them to sell items in their permanent storefronts. 

Mariela Flores, a first-year elementary education major from Jonesboro, works at the Hispanic center. Flores said Hermana y Hermano reached out to the Hispanic Center to come to the expo to inform people about the services they provide for the community.  

The Hispanic Center offers mental health programs, after-school tutoring programs for children kindergarten through 12th grade, Zumba classes in the Earl Bell Community Center, legal assistance, translation services and Lacuna, a pre and postnatal service for pregnant women where they can receive assistance. 

“This is important because a lot of the services we offer are free,” Flores said. “We know there are families who can’t afford certain services and we want to help anybody and everybody that we can.”

Gabriela Alonso, vice president of Hermana y Hermano, also had a table set up to sell pottery, totes bags and things she crocheted for her small business Empyrean Studios. 

Alonso, a sophomore world languages major from Los Angeles, sells tote bags featuring a Polaroid camera, nature iconography, an 8-ball and the phrase “remember me” in both Spanish and English. 

Alonso said these tote bags were a personal project based on a story of her parents who traveled to the United States by themselves and as a result don’t have a lot of pictures of themselves. 

“It means a lot to me that you might not be physically remembered with memorabilia but there’s still people that will remember you,” Alonso said. 

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