The inspiration came partly from watching events they wanted more people to experience. Beautiful settings, thoughtful details, exciting brands: influencer gatherings offered a kind of discovery that Isabella De Yavorsky and Silvana Liscano felt should extend beyond the invited few. “Why should experiences like these be reserved for influencers? Why couldn’t we create that same feeling for the everyday girl? For the actual consumer?” the WellUp founders recall asking.

Their idea was not to launch another product or build a permanent space. It was to connect existing brands, venues and communities through experiences that made people feel included. Wellness gave the familiar pop-up format a different purpose, and its name. “It’s not a pop-up, it’s a WellUp”, they explain.

More than a goodie bag

For Isabella and Silvana, an event should be something guests anticipate all week, not another obligation on the calendar. The intention is to make attending feel like a treat, with enough care behind the details that people leave feeling they received more than they expected.

“One of our biggest philosophies has always been to underpromise and overdeliver”, they emphasize. That thinking shapes everything from the setting to the products guests take home. Discount codes and travel-size samples do not automatically make a gift meaningful. The founders want to introduce brands they personally value and would use themselves.

But products are only one part of the relationship. “The experience might be what brings them in the first time, but the way we make them feel is what keeps them coming back”, they reflect. Familiar faces become friendships through repeated encounters, turning an event series into something people feel part of.

Discovery, not a sales pitch

Partnership decisions start with practical questions: Would the founders use the product? Would they pay for it? What does it offer their community? Could attendees genuinely become customers?

The next requirement is participation. “We don’t believe in traditional vendor tables or simply handing out samples. Every brand that participates has to bring something experiential to the table”, they explain.

WellUp works with partners on creative concepts that let guests interact with a product or service firsthand. An activation must contribute to the overall experience, rather than simply occupy space.“We don’t want our community to feel like they’re being marketed to. We want them to feel like they’re discovering something worth knowing about”, the founders add.

Earning that trust took time. Early on, brands declined gifting opportunities, collaborations and event production proposals. The founders had to demonstrate their value through the experiences themselves, gradually turning introductions into working relationships.

More experiences, not more people per room

Both founders bring corporate and startup experience to the business. They describe a combination of resourcefulness and structure: being comfortable figuring things out while developing the processes needed to grow sustainably. Their approach to scale, however, is deliberately selective. “Growing WellUp means creating more experiences, not necessarily bigger ones”, they clarify.

Long coffee lines, limited access to amenities and guests feeling lost in a crowd undermine the premium experience they want to deliver. For them, an event’s quality depends as much on how it feels to attend as on how it looks.

Expansion means taking that intimate format to more people and more locations, with new cities part of their vision. The ambition is broader reach without diluting individual attention. “We want the community to grow, but we never want the individual experience to feel any less special”, they concludes.

Beyond the guest list: WellUp | @wellupcollective