A clothing company that gives back, founded by a superwoman

5-minute read

There is a running gag among the family of Nahomi Enrico that she can do anything — literally anything — as long as someone asks her nicely.

She is a DIY virtuosa who can build a kitchen cabinet or mount a flat-screen TV to the living room wall. She can darn a hole in just a few minutes. She can create her own Christmas ornaments. And in case she is never challenged to a duel, she knows how to handle a fencing sword.

As legend now has it, Enrico once tamed a mountain lion.

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But she may have surprised even herself in July 2022, when she spoke a personal health struggle into a small business that makes people feel good while raising money for an under-the-radar charity in Norwood.

“I wanted to do something to give back,” says Enrico, a 36-year-old mother of two from Paramus. “I feel very blessed to have received the kindness that I got throughout the most difficult part of my life.”

Her business, Busca La Luz, is a home workshop that makes accessories and casual apparel, such as hoodies and T-shirts, for men and women.

Most T-shirts sell for $29, and hoodies $62. Like many of its tops, the “Make Mistakes Tee” and the “Positive Vibes Tee” have uplifting messages printed on them.

“The goal is comfort and encouragement,” Enrico says.

She designs the images and letters for the clothing, and after buying blank tops from a wholesaler, she says she screen-prints, packages and sends them to her clients. It is all done out of her basement, she says, adding that each shipment contains a handwritten thank-you note.

Here are six more things that you should know about the multi-talented Enrico.

1. She was born in the Dominican Republic.

Enrico says her family hails from Santo Domingo, the capital of the Caribbean nation.

She benefited from what she calls a “comfortable” upbringing before her parents — her mother is an esthetician, and her father an HVAC contractor — immigrated to the Bronx. Her family eventually settled in the north end of Paterson.

Enrico is a 2006 graduate of International High School, a satellite school of the K-12 district on the opposite side of the city. It was there that she joined a fencing team.

She says she was “academically driven” and focused on attaining a scholarship to take pressure off of her family to pay for college. She went to Rutgers, where she studied animal science and ecology.

2. You know that part about the mountain lion? That was true.

The secret to subduing big cats, Enrico says, is to give them plenty of room to roam.

“You respect space,” she says, laughing.

Enrico encountered mountain lions when she worked as a zoologist at Van Saun County Park in Paramus. The cougars, as they are sometimes called, were the apex predators of the 130-acre recreation center. She says she also tends to many lesser species, including hedgehogs and Madagascar hissing cockroaches.

“Being outside and animals are just like — they’re just like my center point,” she says. “Whenever I feel stressed, I go outside.”

3. She beats cancer.

Enrico was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer in December 2020.

She says she found a lump under her right arm a month earlier and initially thought that the soreness was due to weightlifting. She and her husband, Daniel Enrico, set up a gym in their home garage during the pandemic.

After a series of mammograms, Enrico says doctors discovered multiple lumps. She then underwent a double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery at John Theurer Cancer Center, which is part of Hackensack University Medical Center.

She still visits the hospital for frequent checkups, but she says she is well on her way to a full recovery.

4. There is a special significance behind the name of her business.

Busca La Luz is a Spanish term that means “look for the light,” Enrico says.

It was a self-affirmation that kept her motivated as she faced month after month of grueling chemotherapy, she says.

“When you’re in a dark space, find your moonlight,” Enrico says. “Find your source of light to orient you to where you need to go.”

That is why the animal lover has a moth as the logo for her business, she says. The insect is a delicate creature attracted to light, and in the same sense, she was a cancer patient in search of hope.

5. Her clothing sales generated $6,000 in donations in the first year and a half.

Enrico says she donates 10% of each sale to the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation. Her customers can pledge an extra $5 to the nonprofit when they check out of her online store.

That generosity resulted in giving thousands of dollars in contributions to the charity.

Enrico says her business was on hiatus this year, due to a home renovation project, but that her clients can still place orders. She says the workshop will be up and running at full steam very soon.

According to the American Cancer Society, triple-negative breast cancer accounts for up to 15% of all breast cancers. It is more common in women younger than 40 years old, who are Black or who have a certain gene mutation.

6. She teaches her children to be ‘adaptable.’

A side hustle of making acrylic Christmas ornaments in December 2021 gave Enrico enough confidence, she says, to know that her creations were marketable. Within six months, Busca La Luz was established.

She halfway jokes how she is a lifelong student of the “For Dummies” book series and YouTube — two bottomless founts of knowledge. And she says she always encourages her daughters, 10-year-old Olivia and 7-year-old Penelope, to learn new things.

“If you want something done,” Enrico says, “first see if you can learn how to do it. The more skills you gain, the better off you are.”

Because if there is a “quirk in the road,” she adds, “you’re adaptable. You have the skills to be adaptable.”

For more information on Busca La Luz, visit its website at buscalaluz.com.

Philip DeVencentis is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

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