About Me
I grew up in a home where Spanish sounded three different ways.
My dad is Dominican. My mom is Cuban. My grandfather came from Spain. And I was raised in Puerto Rico, mi isla, where all of it came together around one table. Before I ever studied marketing, I learned its most important lesson at home: the same word can mean something different depending on who is listening, and where they come from.
That’s why I don’t believe in marketing that only translates. I believe in marketing that understands.
Creativity runs in my family too. My brother and I grew up making things, and today we both build brands for a living. He founded La Mafia Puerto Rico, the culinary discovery platform that helps people find where to eat across the island and is home to the Lazos de Oro awards. I’ve been its digital strategist and marketing consultant, helping grow a family brand from the inside. It taught me what every owner I work with feels: a brand isn’t a campaign. It’s personal.
My career began in Puerto Rico at Kroma, where for almost two years I managed international brands including Casa Bacardí Puerto Rico, Hellmann’s, GE Appliances and P.F. Chang’s. The work I’m proudest of is our campaign for Vaquería Tres Monjitas, a brand that lives in Puerto Rican homes. We launched El De Las Tres, connecting the café con leche community with the afternoon cafecito that defines the rest of our day. It’s still my favorite proof that the best campaigns don’t invent a moment; they name one people already live.
In Tampa Bay, I carried that experience into media. As Product Manager of Centro Tampa Bay, the Spanish-language publication of the Tampa Bay Times and Tampa Bay Newspapers, I lead strategy, partnerships and community presence. We launched Centro’s solo website www.centrotampabay.com on January 2023 and implemented incredible initiatives like, Where I Come From, a video series asking local business owners and leaders the question my own family taught me to ask. Every person has a story worth hearing, and so does every business.
Outside the office, I give back the way I know best: through brand and story. As President of Tampa Hispanic Heritage, Inc., I led the organization’s full rebranding and communication standards as a volunteer, as a way to love and give back to my community. As a board member of the Hispanic Professional Women’s Association (HPWA), I’m helping develop a new season of La Voz, its monthly newsletter spotlighting our community and serving as a member perk. I serve on the Marketing & Innovation Committee of the Tampa Bay Latin Chamber of Commerce, on the executive teams of The Women Network (WIN) and the Tampa Bay Business Club, and as a Council Member on the Mayor’s Hispanic Advisory Council. Community isn’t my audience. It’s where I come from.
Through @bycarolruiz I bring all of it together. I help law firms, medical practices, financial institutions and organizations earn the trust of Hispanic clients, with strategy first and culture always.
What drives my work:
How culture shapes the way people choose who to trust
How a brand earns its place in a community, not just its attention
How strategy and creativity work best at the same table
How stories turn visibility into relationships
Beyond work
I’m a mom, a proud Boricua with Dominican, Cuban and Spanish roots, and a lifelong food explorer. Food has always been my way into culture. You’ll find me sharing Tampa Bay’s food scene on @baybitesbabe, just for fun.