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WHO WE ARE

Dimples

In 1997, Dimples Balaguer- la O’ started her career in manufacturing at the age of 19, launching her swimwear label “ Nothing but H2O” in Manila Philippines. From designing, manufacturing to distribution H2O grew their brick & mortar and distribution business which expanded to 35 doors with island destinations in the Philippines such as Boracay and El Nido.

In 1997, Dimples Balaguer- la O’ started her career in manufacturing at the age of 19, launching her swimwear label “ Nothing but H2O” in Manila Philippines. From designing, manufacturing to distribution H2O grew their brick & mortar and distribution business which expanded to 35 doors with island destinations in the Philippines such as Boracay and El Nido. By 2018 Dimples started her distribution company Meaningful Ventures that focused on mindful brands and manufacturing in the Asian region. With a big move to Canada in 2020 - Common Source Product Development and Consulting Inc was born. Wanting to share her more than 25 years of knowledge and experience in the Fashion Industry, came the launch of Mentor Maven. A mentoring site focused on guiding women achieve their entrepreneurial goals.

Romina

Romina Urra-Gonzalez started her creative career in fashion and lifestyle at a young age as a model working with top international fashion brands and local designers in the Philippines. Her many years on the runway forged many relationships in the fashion industry, gaining trust with the top creatives in the business.

Romina Urra-Gonzalez started her creative career in fashion and lifestyle at a young age as a model working with top international fashion brands and local designers in the Philippines. Her many years on the runway forged many relationships in the fashion industry, gaining trust with the top creatives in the business. After graduating University and pursuing continuing education in Journalism, she started as a writer for a leading newspaper which led to her career in magazine publishing. Her personal life mirrored each phase of her career, as editor-in-chief and founder of a teen magazine (Chalk magazine), managing editor of lifestyle brand (Metro magazine), editor in chief of (Metro Weddings magazine) and style director of (Working Mom magazine). During this time, she was also a TV host and events host for the same media company she worked for. While raising a young family, she took further studies and passed the first level certification as an Image Consultant with Image Asia where she then started her own business as an image consultant and personal branding trainer for individuals and corporate clients. She also started Lifecycles Events, an events company where she was creative director, responsible for the over-all execution of the theme, décor and setup. She continues to find creative avenues to explore in her new home in Vancouver, currently crafting things with botanicals and flowers as seen in her IG page antofilo.botanicals.

Celine

Celine Gabriel-Lim is a Public Relations Professional who wears as many hats as her schedule allows. With a colorful career as a model, TV host, and newspaper columnist behind her, it was only natural that Celine managed to transform her diverse background into several growing enterprises.

Celine Gabriel-Lim is a Public Relations Professional who wears as many hats as her schedule allows. With a colorful career as a model, TV host, and newspaper columnist behind her, it was only natural that Celine managed to transform her diverse background into several growing enterprises.

She is currently a partner at Mullenlowe Marc (formerly ARC Public Relations, Inc.), as well as a parenting columnist for OneMega.Com. She's also the Co-Creator of popular healthy snacks brand Honest Junk, and of Kiele Naturals, a natural and plant-based range of anti-mosquito products. Celine's myriad experiences have helped her develop her impeccable sense of taste for everything lifestyle, from fashion and retail to food and drink. Her opinions on all things chic and unique are trusted by everyone who's worked with her.

WHAT WE BELIEVE

Mentor Maven is a Vancouver based start-up incubator company with big goals.

 

In the challenging and fiercely competitive world of startups, Mentor Maven’s goal is to give fashion start up founders access to savvy, experienced and successful mentors  in the fashion world. In so doing, this opens the door to people who are still at the inception of their businesses, giving them the chance to learn from and connect with the right people who can help them fast track to their goals. Mentor Maven is driven by passion for fashion  and seeing others succeed.  We measure our success by seeing start up founders succeed. In an industry that rarely opens up and shares trade secrets, Mentor Maven stands out as a platform that seeks to help you find the best mentors and eliminate the guess work on  all aspects  of launching your fashion start up.

We think  that all start ups should  be given the same opportunities to get the right guidance from mentors who have been in their shoes.  Our roster of mentors have been carefully selected based on their career achievements, desire to  give back , and know- how to guide founders.

Through their valuable experience and expertise, Mentor Maven can guide founders to make smarter, more efficient, and ethical business decisions.

The end goal is to create a community of professionals in the fashion industry that are paving the way on how information is obtained and how correct decisions are made.