THE WOMAN WHO KEPT CHOOSING HERSELF

The Art of Reinvention

From an European fashion career to global business leadership in the United States, Val Joaquim has built a life defined by movement, ambition, motherhood and the courage to begin again.

by Olivia Wills

There is a thread that runs through Val Joaquim's life, even though, at first glance, the chapters may seem to belong to entirely different stories.

Business school. Fashion. Europe. International markets. The United States. Corporate mobility. Motherhood. Entrepreneurship. Divorce. Starting over. Returning to a company she once left, this time in a senior role.

Look more closely, however, and the story is remarkably consistent. Each chapter has been about people, movement, relationships, curiosity and the willingness to step into unfamiliar territory.

Fluent in five languages, with a deep understanding of business and career, she opts to keep evolving without leaving behind her main talent, being a mother and example for her children.

Today, as a Senior Director of Global Business Growth, where she leads business efforts across the Northeast and contributes to the company's international expansion. It is a role that draws together much of what came before: an international upbringing and career, formal business education in Germany, years of experience in fashion and business, and a professional life built around helping companies and their employees navigate change across borders.

But her résumé does not tell the whole story.

The more revealing story is that of a woman who has repeatedly had to ask herself what comes next, and has learned not to be afraid of the answer.

by Cara Marie Howe

Before corporate world, there was fashion

Long before corporate became part of her professional vocabulary, her career took shape in Europe and in the world of fashion.

Fashion provided an early education in business that went well beyond clothing. It required an understanding of brands, people, presentation, commercial instincts and the subtle differences in how consumers respond to products and ideas. Working in an international environment also meant learning how differently people communicate, negotiate and build relationships across cultures.

Those experiences became an unexpected foundation for everything that followed.

She was already developing the ability to understand what people wanted, recognize an opportunity, present an idea persuasively and build relationships around it.

Studying business in Germany meant stepping into yet another culture and academic environment while developing a more structured understanding of finance, strategy, management and organizational leadership.

The experience was formative not only because of the degree itself, but because of the perspective it provided.

"Living in Europe and studying in Germany changed the way I looked at the world. You realize very quickly that the way you grew up is not the only way to see things. That experience made me much more adaptable, and I think that has stayed with me throughout my career."

It is a lesson that would become particularly valuable later, when her career moved increasingly toward international business.

Crossing an ocean and building again

Eventually, the next major chapter took her to the United States.

Moving countries is often described in practical terms, finding a home, establishing a career, learning a new system. For the person doing it, however, the transition is much more personal. It means leaving behind familiarity while simultaneously trying to establish credibility and belonging in a new environment.

She did both.

The United States became home, and her professional career evolved into a world far removed from her earlier work in fashion. She entered the global mobility industry, a field built around one of the most significant transitions a person can make: moving from one home, city or country to another. Her background made the connection almost intuitive.

She understood international movement personally, but she also understood the commercial side of it. Over the years, she developed extensive experience in corporate relocation, global mobility, strategic business development and account management, working with organizations whose employees and operations crossed geographic boundaries.

That ability to connect the business objective with the human experience became one of the defining strengths of her career. A relocation program can be measured through contracts, budgets and service levels. But for the employee being relocated, it can mean finding a new home, moving children to a new school, leaving friends behind and trying to create a sense of normalcy in an unfamiliar place.

Having lived across cultures herself, she understood that difference.

by Cara Marie Howe

A career built on relationships

As her experience grew, so did the scale of the organizations and relationships she managed. Her work included domestic and international mobility programs, corporate accounts, strategic partnerships and business development. At her previous role at one of America's top van lines, she worked as a Global Account Executive, developing relationships with corporate clients and helping organizations navigate complex relocation needs.

The role brought together seemingly disparate pieces of her background.

Fashion had taught her about people, presentation and commercial instinct. Europe had taught her cultural adaptability. Germany had provided formal business training. The American corporate environment demanded execution, persistence and measurable results.

Together, those experiences created something more valuable than any one credential: a distinctly international approach to business.

"I've never really thought of my career as one straight line. Every experience gave me something that I needed later. Even the things that seemed unrelated at the time ended up becoming part of the same story."

That perspective has become particularly relevant in an era when careers are increasingly fluid.

The traditional idea of choosing one profession, staying in it for decades and steadily moving upward has become less common. For women especially, careers are often interrupted, redirected or rebuilt around marriage, children, relocation and changing priorities.

Her own path reflects that reality.

Motherhood changes the equation

While her professional career was developing, so was another, far more personal role.

She became a mother of three.

Motherhood introduced an entirely different set of responsibilities and, with them, a new understanding of time. An executive calendar can be negotiated. A child's needs cannot always be.

There are professional deadlines that can be moved, but there are also moments in a child's life that happen once. There are business trips and important meetings, but there are school events, difficult conversations, milestones and ordinary evenings that become memories before you realize they are happening.

For years, she learned to navigate both worlds simultaneously.

There is no perfect formula for that balance. There are days when work demands more and days when family does. There are moments of confidence and moments of exhaustion. And there is the constant internal negotiation familiar to so many mothers who want to remain ambitious without feeling that ambition comes at the expense of their children.

"Having children didn't make me want less professionally. It made me much more conscious of what I was building and why. I want my children to see that being a mother can be a huge part of who you are without being the only thing you are."

Her children have grown up alongside that evolution.

They have seen their mother work, lead, travel, make decisions, build relationships and continue to pursue her own goals. They have also seen the less visible side of adulthood: uncertainty, difficult choices, setbacks and the necessity of beginning again.

That may ultimately be one of the most important things she can give them, not the appearance of a perfect life, but an example of what it looks like to keep moving through an imperfect one.

by Cara Marie Howe

When life changes the plan

Not every transition in Val's life was planned.

Marriage eventually gave way to divorce. The structure of the family changed, responsibilities had to be reorganized, and a life that had once been imagined one way had to be reconsidered.

Divorce is often described publicly in terms of its legal conclusion, but the emotional reality is much longer. It requires reconstructing routines, identity, family dynamics and sometimes one's understanding of the future.

For a mother, there is an additional layer: rebuilding your own life while remaining deeply conscious of the lives of your children.

The experience became another exercise in reinvention.

It was not about pretending that the previous chapter had never existed. It was about recognizing that an ending does not invalidate everything that came before it.

There were lessons, memories, relationships and, most importantly, children.

The task was to carry what was valuable forward while creating something new.

"I think one of the hardest things in life is accepting that something can be meaningful and still come to an end. An ending doesn't mean it wasn't real or that it wasn't important. Sometimes it simply means the next chapter requires something different."

That understanding has influenced how she approaches change more broadly.

She no longer sees a career transition, a personal transition or a new beginning as evidence that the previous version of her life failed.

Sometimes life changes because the person living it has changed.

Returning to where it began

In 2026, that philosophy took a particularly meaningful form when she returned to her previous company after approximately four years away.

"Coming back felt familiar, but I wasn't coming back as the same person. I had spent years building experience elsewhere, and I could see the opportunity differently. Sometimes you need to leave something to understand what you can eventually bring back to it."

There is something particularly satisfying about that kind of professional full circle.

The goal of a career is not necessarily to keep moving away from everything you have done before. Sometimes the most meaningful progression is returning to something familiar with an entirely new perspective.

The fashion instinct never disappeared

Despite the evolution of her professional career, the creative instincts developed during her years in fashion never disappeared. They simply found a different outlet.

Motherhood eventually inspired the idea for Mimi Boulevard, a handmade baby brand built around the idea of heirloom quality clothing and blankets for young children.

The origin story was deeply personal.

After her daughter Clarisse, affectionately known as Mimi, was born prematurely, Val learned knitting and crochet (a skill also thought by her grandmother) and began creating tiny pieces for her.

The act of making something by hand became more than a creative hobby. It connected her to a different kind of work, slower, tactile and deeply personal.

Over time, the idea evolved into a business concept.

Mimi Boulevard envisioned beautiful, timeless pieces made from materials such as merino, cotton and bamboo cotton, with a soft, understated aesthetic. The concept also included working with women artisans in Nepal, creating an opportunity to combine craftsmanship with economic empowerment.

In many ways, the idea brings several chapters of her life together.

The fashion background is there.

So is motherhood.

So is international business.

So is the instinct to build something that has a story behind it.

"Mimi Boulevard really came from love. I started making things because I wanted something special for my daughter. Then I realized there was an opportunity to create something bigger, something beautiful, meaningful and connected to other women."

The same creative instinct has also led to Mimi Design, a needlepoint and cross-stitch pattern concept.

For someone whose corporate career is centered on growth, these creative businesses might seem like a departure. In reality, they reveal another dimension of the same entrepreneurial mind.

Whether she is developing a corporate plan or imagining a new children's collection, the process begins similarly: identify an idea, understand the people it serves, determine what makes it distinctive and figure out how to bring it to life.

Learning to speak for herself

One of the most important changes in her professional life has been internal rather than external. She has learned to advocate for herself. That sounds simple, but for many accomplished women it is surprisingly difficult. Women are often comfortable demonstrating competence but less comfortable explicitly asking to be recognized for it.

Over time, experience changed that.

"I don't think women should wait for someone else to tell them they are ready. There comes a point when you have to understand your own value and be willing to advocate for yourself. You can be humble and still know what you bring to the table."

It is a lesson that extends beyond corporate life.

The ability to advocate for yourself matters in business, relationships, motherhood and every other area in which women are expected to accommodate rather than ask.

by Cara Marie Howe

The Self Care Routine

For all the demands of her professional and personal life, she has also learned that taking care of herself cannot always be what gets pushed to the bottom of the list. Her mornings often begin at 5 a.m., before the house is fully awake, with a workout that has become less about appearance and more about discipline, energy and mental clarity. She considers that quiet time an investment in herself, a few uninterrupted moments to move, think and prepare for the day ahead. Skincare is another part of that ritual, not as an elaborate pursuit of perfection but as a daily reminder to slow down and take care of herself. She pays attention to sleep, hydration, movement and the small routines that help her feel grounded, particularly during periods when work and family demand more from her. Her philosophy is practical: self-care does not have to mean disappearing for a weekend at a spa or finding hours of free time that most mothers simply do not have. Sometimes it is going to bed instead of answering one more email, waking up early to exercise, taking care of your skin, eating well, or simply giving yourself twenty minutes of uninterrupted quiet.

“I think women sometimes believe self-care has to be something big and luxurious,” she says. “For me, it is much more about consistency. I take care of myself because I want to have the energy to take care of everything and everyone else that matters to me. You cannot pour from an empty cup, and I have learned that taking care of myself is not selfish, it is part of being the woman, mother and leader I want to be.”

A life made of several identities

Perhaps what makes her story particularly relevant now is that none of her identities exists independently.

The fashion professional is still present in the entrepreneur.

The woman who studied in Germany is still present in the international executive.

The immigrant is still present in the global mobility leader.

The mother is present in the entrepreneur.

The executive is present in the mother.

And the woman who has experienced significant personal change is present in all of them.

There is no single version of her that is the "real" one.

All of them are.

That is increasingly how she thinks about identity.

"I don't want to be put into one box. I've built an international career. I'm a mother. I'm an entrepreneur. I've gone through major personal changes. None of those things cancels out the others."

That may be the most modern part of her story.

Women are often encouraged to define themselves by one dominant role. Mother. Executive. Wife. Entrepreneur. Caregiver.

But a life can contain contradictions.

A woman can be ambitious and nurturing, analytical and creative, independent and deeply connected to her family. She can want financial success and meaningful relationships. She can build a corporate career while dreaming about a handmade children's brand.

The point is not to choose.

The point is to create a life in which the different pieces can coexist.

What comes next

At 42, there is still a sense of beginning in her story.

Her children are growing older and entering increasingly independent stages of their lives. Professionally, she is entered a new chapter with an international focus. Entrepreneurially, ideas that once existed only in notebooks and conversations continue to evolve.

The future is less about proving that she can succeed and more about deciding what is worth building.

That distinction matters.

Earlier in a career, ambition can be about achievement for achievement's sake, the next title, the next promotion, the next milestone.

Later, the questions become more personal.

What kind of work is meaningful?

What kind of example do I want to set?

What do I want to build that can exist beyond me?

What do I want my children to learn by watching how I live?

And perhaps the most important question: what does success look like when you are no longer trying to prove that you deserve a seat at the table?

For her the answer seems increasingly connected to freedom, the freedom to continue evolving without asking permission to change.

by Cara Marie Howe

The woman still becoming

There is no neat conclusion to this story because Val's life does not appear to be moving toward one.

She is still building.

Still leading.

Still parenting.

Still creating.

Still learning.

Still imagining businesses that do not yet exist.

Still exploring what the next decade might look like.

Her story began in one country and expanded across several. It moved from fashion to business school, from Germany, Luxembourg, France, Ireland to the United States, and from one family structure to another.

Through all of it, the common denominator has been movement.

Not always easy movement.

Not always planned movement.

But movement nonetheless.

"I've learned that you don't have to have your entire life figured out. You just have to be willing to keep moving and to be honest with yourself about what you want next."

That may be the most enduring lesson in her journey. Not that everything worked exactly as planned. It didn't. Not that every chapter was easy.

It wasn't.

But that a woman's life does not have to be a straight line to be a successful one.

Sometimes the most interesting lives are built through unexpected turns.

A European fashion career can become the foundation for an American business career. Motherhood can inspire an entirely new entrepreneurial vision. A company once left behind can become home again. Divorce can become the beginning of a different family structure. A woman can reach forty and realize that she is not nearing the end of her story, but finally has enough experience to write the next part with intention.

And perhaps that is what makes Valeryana Joaquim's story worth telling.

Not because she has arrived.

But because she has never stopped becoming.

by Alice Wills