I’m the CEO of a Cosmetics Brand, This Is What My Entire Day Looks Like

In 2018, Gabriela Trujillo was tired of hustling and managing the uncertainty of being a makeup artist — a profession she’d chosen since she was eighteen. She no longer wanted to wake up at 5:00 a.m. on weekend mornings to do bridal makeup on her feet all day. The more she started to consider her future, the more she realized that her career lay in the production of cosmetics rather than the application of it.

Trujillo wasn’t new to the cosmetic development game. She had previously worked for a big-time beauty subscription box company and knew the ins and outs of social media, marketing and color cosmetic development. She decided to combine all her skills to create the brand of her dreams: Alamar Cosmetics, which is named after the city she was born in — Alamar, Cuba.

And now, Alamar Cosmetics has surpassed all of Trujillo’s wild expectations. The Latina-founded cosmetics company partnered with Disney to create Disney’s Encanto Colección by Alamar Cosmetics.

The colección — which is an homage to Colombia, family and inner magic — is made up of 13 limited-edition pieces ranging from Alamar’s lip glosses to blushes to highlighters. And for the first time, Alamar is releasing a liquid eyeliner. All of the pieces are inspired by the colors, characters and messages behind Disney’s Encanto.

Trujillo was both loving and intentional in the way she approached creating this palette, particularly the Encanto Eyeshadow Palette. “We set out to capture the magic of the movie,” she told mitú. “This palette represents familial love and support. For Latinos especially, we can all relate to staying so close to our big, multigenerational family.”

While being a jefa who is her own boss may seem like a breeze, it’s no secret that a lot of work goes into running a business.

That’s why we asked Trujillo, who lives in Florida, to detail what her day-to-day life looks like, which includes working through lunch, two showers a day, and plenty of Snickers coffee creamer.

9:00 a.m.: The absolute first thing I do is make coffee. I walk straight to my kitchen and brew my coffee. I have to have Snickers creamer with my coffee. While my coffee’s brewing, I jump in the shower. I get dressed, but I only do my makeup if I have Zoom meetings with people outside of my company.

9:30 a.m.: Right after I get dressed, I hop on my laptop, check emails, and make my to-do list for the day. I see what to-do’s are left over from the following day, prioritize that, and then I make my list for the upcoming day. I live with my fiancé, who also works for the company, and we’re together pretty much all day. 

10:00 a.m.: I have the same breakfast every morning — ½ a cup of oatmeal, some almond milk, a tablespoon of peanut butter, Lily’s sugar free chocolate chips and some honey. 

11:00 a.m.: By this time I’m showered, fed and ready for my first call. I have Zoom meetings every single day from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. 

2 – 2:30 p.m.: Lunch is my most neglected meal of the day. I’m a pescatarian, so usually I throw together some tuna salad with crackers or a tofurkey sandwich. While I’m making lunch, I usually scroll through TikTok or put on a YouTube video.

2:30 p.m.: This is when I get actual work done. I hop back on my laptop, update all my Google sheets, check in with every ongoing project that I have. Right now, with this Disney launch, I have a lot of projects with creators ongoing. I’m doing a 3-D rendering with a 3-D artist, I’m also creating a bunch of high-res photography. So I’m giving feedback, going back and forth, sending shots of what it should look like. I check in with my ads manager or my email marketing manager to see what’s needed from me. 

5:00 p.m.: On a really good, disciplined day, I’ll break at 5:00 p.m. to go spinning. That is the goal, right there. Do I miss it often? I do. But is it always paid for and on my calendar? Yes.

6:00 pm: I’m very odd — I have to shower twice a day. I shower after spin class. I keep everything in my shower — toothbrush, toothpaste, face cleanser, moisturizer. It’s all in there. 

7:00 p.m.: I have a lot of people that work for me on the West Coast, so their schedules are a bit different. I usually have to jump on another call or jump on a collaborative Zoom for product development. Right now, because of this Disney project, I have a standing call with my graphic designer at 7:00 p.m. We talk banners, email marketing, stuff like that.

8:00 p.m.: Dinner is, sadly, usually Uber eats. By that time, I am, like, done. So I’ll make something super easy, like avocado toast or I’m going to order something. My fiancé either makes me a meal, or if he’s busy, I’ll make something for both of us. 

9:00 p.m: This is my hard-out for the day. I will exit out of all my tabs, all of my Google Suite and turn off all my Slack notifications. Anything that I didn’t do today goes on the next day’s to-do list.

9:30 p.m: I have to do something every day that makes me happy, or if not, I’ll go crazy. Around twice a week, I’ll invite a friend or two over and we’ll drink wine, talk about our day and unwind. When I’m not with friends, I usually like to binge-watch TV shows. Right now, it’s “The Big Bang Theory.” Last week, it was “You.” 

12:00 a.m.: Before I go to bed, I lock up, feed my dogs and try to get as much housework done as I can before the night is over. It takes me a while to unwind and disconnect my brain, so I go to bed around midnight.

Disney’s Encanto Colección by Alamar Cosmetics is now available on www.alamarcosmetics.com.