Inspiring confidence: in conversation with Babba C Rivera.

Welcome to our Inspiring Confidence series, where we delve into personal interviews with influential Varley women. By focusing on instilling quiet confidence, we uncover their unique journeys, experiences, and insights, celebrating the remarkable perspectives of women who inspire us.

This time, we sat down with Babba Rivera - Sweden-raised, NYC-based entrepreneur, marketing visionary, and founder of the clean hair care brand, Ceremonia. In our conversation, Babba shares her journey from tech trailblazer to beauty innovator, her experiences as a mother of four, and the inspiration she draws from life in New York City.

Can you walk us through the early stages of your professional journey?

I built my career in the tech industry. I was an early employee at Uber, initially hired to help launch the service into the Swedish market, which led to a transfer to the New York office. I fell in love with the city and never looked back! After my time at Uber and later at Away, I embarked on my entrepreneurial journey as the founder of my own brand marketing agency. This is when I started working with beauty professionally for the first time, with clients ranging from Glossier, to Prose and YSL beauty. I’ve been in New York for 10 years now, and I am happy to call this my forever home. I appreciate the many phases of life I’ve cherished here. From being in my early 20s hustling to make ends meet, working around the clock and partying every weekend, to now being in my mid-30s as founder and mom of 4 small children. I spend most of my time in our Upstate home, while keeping my connection to the city alive through weekly visits for work and play.

Are there any key insights from your marketing career that you’ve applied to your role as a founder?

Totally. As a founder you’re forced to wear many hats, and often have to hold many interim roles as you aren’t able to afford a full team as a startup. For me, this has meant staying super close to everything that relates to brand and marketing for Ceremonia. I’m essentially our interim head of social media, community and marketing amongst many other things, haha!

What was the driving force behind your decision to establish Ceremonia?

I had reached a low point in my own hair journey. After over a decade of frantically damaging my hair in a quest to “fit in” with the beauty standards that were far from diverse, I simply had enough. My hair had gotten extremely dry, brittle and frizzy as a result of damage. I was bleaching it, straightening it every day and using toxic products that promised to “tame” my hair. I started to ask myself, where is the “care” aspect of hair care? How does one restore and rebuild one’s natural hair after years of damage? What if there could be a version of hair care that could help me restore healthy hair that’s easy to manage, and that I’d feel confident wearing naturally without the need for styling every day?

It was through all these questions that I eventually reconnected with my heritage and upbringing. I grew up as the daughter of a Chilean hairdresser who from an early age had taught me the importance of practicing beauty as a form of self-care and utilizing natural ingredients from Latin America as medicine for the hair. This journey of self-discovery eventually formed the foundation of what today is Ceremonia, a clean hair care brand that’s proudly rooted in my Latin Heritage, bottling passed down hair rituals into a modern, inclusive brand, blurring the lines between natural and science backed. We pride ourselves for working with 95%+ natural ingredients in every formula while also providing clinically backed results you can trust.

In 2015, you initiated HER, a community aimed at empowering women to challenge societal norms. Why do you think communities like these are crucial for women’s professional growth and development?

Your network is basically your net worth. I see this a lot amongst my male friends and the incredible networks they come out with from business school… I really wish I had that, but I went to school in Sweden and built my career in Europe initially, meaning when I came to NYC, I knew literally nobody. I had zero friends to call for advice. In a quest to change that for myself, I started hosting dinner parties in my tiny East Village apartment. After a few dinners, it became clear to me how needed this was — and that’s when I decided to formalize the concept into a community.

What’s really amazing is that most of the people I connected with back then were managers or just starting out in their respective careers, just like myself, and through the years we’ve all grown and today my network is filled with CEOs, founders, VPs, EICs etc. There’s something magical about growing alongside your peers, versus meeting these people when they’ve already “made it.”

You openly share your experiences, from motherhood to launching a business, including the obstacles you’ve encountered. What advice would you give to someone who is still figuring out their path?

To remember that every experience is a gift, not only the “good” ones. The reality is that looking back at my own career and life, it’s through the objectively speaking “hard” times that I’ve gained the most. Whether it’s wisdom or the urge to change course. Every hardship is an opportunity for us to learn something and make the changes needed to get us closer to where we want to be.

How does your personal style influence your confidence, and what are your key Varley wardrobe staples?

My personal style is rooted in comfort. I love being chic and fabulous, don’t get me wrong, but not at the expense of comfort. The best outfit is the one you feel comfortable in, because that’s when you’ll shine true confidence. I absolutely LOVE everything Varley does, because not only is the design effortless and comfortable, but also elegant thanks to the incredible materials. I can always trust Varley with breathable materials, comfort and fit. I’m currently living in this all-cream everyday look for workdays, and when I’m off duty you’ll find me in my winter sporty gear running errands in the city or hiking with the family. I love this cream/red knit and leggings – they’re like butter. And the socks! Everyone needs these socks!!

Our first U.S. store just opened in Soho, New York. Have you had a chance to visit yet?

Yes, congratulations!! It’s stunning, but more importantly, I love that I can now come and try on the pieces for myself and layer full looks.

Quick-fire questions New York:

If you could dine at only one NYC restaurant forever, which would it be?

Corner Bar! That place is like my extended living room, their vibe is so cozy for everything from breakfast to lunch and dinner. It also has the unique quality of feeling both lux and easy going all at once. I go here for work meetings but also for weekend brunch with the family.

Which neighborhood best captures the city’s energy for you?

While I have a lot of favorite neighborhoods, the energy around SoHo is probably what best captures the essence of New York for me. All my favorite shops are here, and I love that every single street is packed with inspiration and good matcha’s in every corner!

Where’s your go-to spot for shopping?

I love strolling around SoHo, basically all my favorite brands have amazing flagships within walking distance from one another.

Describe your perfect NYC day.

My perfect family day in NYC is a slow morning at home enjoying breakfast and baby snuggles while the toddlers play, and some silly shows for us. We then get everyone ready for a walk alongside the Piers towards Seaport, enjoy lunch at Malibu Farm, then stroll around Seaport, visit the McNally bookstore, grab a matcha, buy the girls some books, then head over to the playground. I love finishing the adventure with a visit to the tin building to buy dinner groceries for the evening. They have an amazing curation of seafood, cheese boards, greens, bread and more. We then enjoy a quiet evening at home with the kids, and I unplug in our steam sauna once they’re all asleep.