Espiritu Presents: Our founders. Birria, Friendship, and the Long Road to Building Espíritu

Mexico City, birria tacos, and a story that started long before Espíritu had a name. In this episode of Espíritu Presents, our founders sit down to talk about friendship, movement, setbacks, and what it really takes to build something from scratch.

Where It All Began

Before Espíritu was a brand, it was a friendship. Francisco and Oscar met when they were just thirteen years old and quickly became inseparable. What started as teenage friendship turned into a pattern: dreaming up ideas, figuring out how to fund them, and learning by doing.

Summer camps. Car washes. Cookouts. Small parties to raise money for travel. These early projects weren’t about profit—they were about curiosity, movement, and staying busy. About learning how to work together.

“We’ve always been doing little projects together,” they say. “It kept us moving.”

Two Minds, One Vision

Francisco, originally from Chihuahua, Mexico, moved to the United States at seventeen. He describes himself as the creative force—driven by ideas, aesthetics, and intuition. Oscar, equally passionate, brings a grounded energy shaped by his love for fashion, music, travel, and sports.

One more instinctive, the other more structured. Type B meets down-to-earth. That balance became the foundation of Espíritu.

“We make a really good team,” they explain. “That’s how ideas actually become real.”

The Hustle Years: Flea Markets and Beaches

The early Espíritu days unfolded in Los Angeles. Every weekend meant loading up product and setting up at flea markets—Melrose Trading Post, Los Feliz Artisan Fleas, Smorgasburg. During the week, they sold sandals at the beach.

There was no glamour. Just repetition, conversations with strangers, learning how people walk, what they need, what they respond to. The brand grew organically, face to face.

Eventually, they took a leap and opened their first retail space in Echo Park.

Then Everything Stopped

A few months after opening the shop, COVID hit.

The store closed. Flea markets shut down. Beach selling disappeared overnight. The entire system they depended on collapsed.

“It was devastating,” they admit. “We didn’t know what to do.”

For many brands, that moment marked the end. For Espíritu, it forced a reinvention.

Rebuilding in Real Time

A friend from Chihuahua—also out of work due to the pandemic—joined the conversation. Together, they built a new plan focused on digital presence and social media advertising.

What followed surprised them all.

Orders began arriving daily. Then dozens a day. Then hundreds a week. To date, Espíritu has sold over 45,000 pairs online.

“That completely turned the business around,” they say.

Coming Home, Expanding Forward

After the pandemic, another milestone arrived: a physical store in San Miguel de Allende. Located just a block from the cathedral, the space became a home base—one that still stands today.

As demand grew, logistics became crucial. Espíritu established operations in El Paso, Texas, allowing smoother shipping across the U.S.—from Los Angeles to New York and everywhere in between.

What began as a market brand became a cross-border operation.

Espíritu Today

Today, Espíritu continues to grow—slowly, intentionally, and with its roots intact. The brand now sells internationally, including in Australia and Europe, and continues to show up in markets across the United States.

You can still find the founders on the ground—fitting customers, talking stories, sharing a laugh—in cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, New York, and Austin.

Looking ahead, their plans for 2026 include opening two new locations: one in Oaxaca and one in Mexico City.

Why This Story Matters

Espíritu was never built overnight. It was built through friendship, risk, collapse, and trust. Through markets and setbacks. Through movement—physical and emotional.

And through staying close to the people who wear the shoes.

 

Espíritu’s Take

We believe brands should feel human. Built on shared meals, long walks, and stories told honestly. Espíritu exists to walk with you—through markets, cities, travels, and transitions.

If you see us at a market, come say hi. We’ll get you fitted, share a story, and maybe even point you to the best tacos nearby.

This is Espíritu. And we’re just getting started.