Teresa Hernandez grew up in Dallas, earned an MBA, and moved to Charlotte in 1998 for a consulting job. She had no plans to own a business. Then September 11 made her rethink how much money she needed, and in 2004 she opened Pura Vida Worldly Art in NoDa, Charlotte's arts district.
The idea was simple: a place for artisans in poor countries to sell what they make. Customers get something beautiful, and the artisans keep making it. "There's a face behind every product that we sell," she says. The name is a Costa Rican saying that translates, roughly, to "life is good."
The early years taught her things. The shop also sold coffee and hosted live music. The Mexican tin art she loved didn't suit many Charlotte homes, and most of it ended up in her own.
Today it's a locally owned fair trade gift shop with handmade pieces from more than 40 countries. The shelves have held Kenyan soapstone carvings, Indonesian kites, Tibetan singing bowls, and journals made from elephant dung. She loves telling kids what things are made of. The walls are painted in colors she chose with a feng shui compass, to stand for water, wood, metal, and fire. A Día de los Muertos shrine, part of her Mexican heritage, has been a fixture since the shop's early years, with photos of people and pets that visitors bring in to remember.
Every piece has a face behind it. Pura Vida.
