We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Becky Anzaldo a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Becky, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

When I began dreaming up my cozy clothing brand, I knew I wanted to incorporate my blended background. It was important to tie in my Mexican and Japanese sides because they both played a big part in who I am today. And growing up, I never saw women that looked like me in magazines, so I am showing up now with Playa Yama for all the mixed girls out there. Playa Yama, reflects this ethos – ‘playa’ means beach in Spanish (homage to my Mexican roots) invoking the laid-back vibes of coastal living, and ‘yama’ means mountain in Japanese (homage to my Japanese roots) representing the elevated sense of fashion and mountain lifestyle of California (where I grew up).

Becky, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Creating Playa Yama, a cozy clothing brand, has been a childhood dream of mine. My mom is a huge inspiration for the brand, she was my first influence into fashion. She loved the arts and had fun collecting designer clothing like Yves Saint Laurent, Salvatore Ferragamo and Nicole Miller. My interest in fashion took me to New York to work in the fashion industry after college. After a decade of working in contemporary and luxury fashion in NYC, my mom got sick and I moved back to California to take care of her. She passed away, right after I became a new mother, I was lost in grief, and yearning for comfort. I was searching for purpose in life, and I remembered looking for comfortable clothing that would be cozy enough to wear at home but cool enough to wear out. And thus Playa Yama was born.

It all started launching one style, a cozy checkered sweater with sizing up to a 5X in two colors, comfortable enough to work from home in, but cool enough to wear out and about. After losing my mom, I was going through grief and an identity crisis and I could barely get dressed. Once I experienced loss, motherhood, and leaving my career and how I was so uncomfortable through those changes, I knew I wanted to bring comfort to women. And our cozy checkered sweaters are like wearing a blanket that feels like a warm hug. We use the softest microfiber knit that feels so good to the touch, it is the epitome of dopamine dressing. Life can get hard, and I want to create clothes that bring a little comfort to people’s lives.

After working in the fashion industry, I was able to see first hand how designer clothing was not being offered above a size 12 or 14. And with a woman’s average size in the U.S. being a size 16, that doesn’t make sense. Women of all sizes should have access to fun trendy clothing no matter their size. I am proud to offer sizes up to a 5X.

Every season we launch small capsule collections that are limited edition. This way our customers feel special in unique styles and colors. With less inventory each drop, we are able to avoid waste and adding to the landfills. And by offering exclusive designs in limited quantities, we create a sense of excitement and anticipation among our customers, fostering a stronger bond between us and our loyal supporters. These drops serve as a way for us to express gratitude to our customers for their continued support. We see each limited edition release as a token of appreciation for the love and loyalty our community has shown us, and we take pride in being able to offer something special in return.

Overall, releasing limited edition drops of our cozy checkered sweaters is not just about selling products—it’s about creating memorable experiences, fostering connections, and expressing our passion for comfort, style, and inclusivity. I couldn’t be prouder to share these special moments with our community.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

There are lessons every day when running Playa Yama, I’ve had to undergo a significant process of unlearning my perfectionist tendencies in order to successfully launch and grow my brand. For so long, I held onto the belief that everything had to be flawless before it could be presented to the world, that any imperfection was a failure. I don’t think that Playa Yama cozy checkered sweaters would exist if I was aiming for perfection. You can always find something that isn’t perfect if you are looking for imperfections. To be honest, I would change things about the styles I already put out if I could do it all over again. You live and you learn, and I’m constantly telling myself, progress over perfection – it allows me to create freely.

However, the journey of building Playa Yama has taught me that perfection is not only unattainable but also unnecessary. In fact, it’s often the imperfections that make something truly beautiful and authentic. Whether it’s the unique texture of our yarns, the handcrafted details of our designs, or the genuine connections we form with our community, it’s these imperfections that give Playa Yama its character and charm.

Embracing imperfection has allowed me to take risks, experiment with new ideas, and learn and grow from our mistakes. It’s empowered me to be more flexible, adaptable, and resilient in the face of challenges, and it’s opened up a world of possibilities for creativity and innovation.

Launching Playa Yama has been a journey of self-discovery and personal growth, and unlearning my perfectionist tendencies has been a crucial part of that process. By letting go of the need for everything to be flawless, I’ve been able to embrace the beauty of imperfection and create a brand that is not only authentic and inclusive but also truly special in its own unique way.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My favorite quote that I remind myself of daily is “Progress over Perfection.” When I began building my brand, the intention was to be a luxury size inclusive cashmere brand. I had very grandiose ideas of building a brand reflective of the designers I had worked for in NYC. Initially, I had focused solely on producing sweaters domestically, believing that this one woman owned factory would be our key to success. But it quickly became apparent that it wasn’t the right fit, and I kept hitting roadblocks and delays in my development. It all began to feel overwhelming, and once I reframed my perspective of just building a smaller more approachable brand, and not limiting myself to only producing domestically since the knitting factories are hard to find in the U.S. I came up with the cozy microfiber plush sweaters that make up Playa Yama today. And I did it one step at a time, and using the idea of “Progress over Perfection,” it gave me the flexibility to make mistakes and continue to grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://playayama.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/playayamashop
• Other: https://tiktok.com/@playayama

Image Credits
Playa Yama