Breaking Barriers: Larissa Arjona and the Art of Making the Extraordinary Visible with Women Leading Rum & Spirits

As tradition dictates at TheRumLab, our Breaking Barriers special arrives each year on International Women’s Day. This year, we feature Larissa Arjona, whose perspective highlights both the progress and the ongoing challenges women face in the spirits industry.

Arjona brings not only her extensive experience at Ron Abuelo, where she serves as Export Marketing Manager, but also her leadership as co-founder and president of Women Leading Rum & Spirits (WLRS). The platform works to elevate and amplify the contributions of women across the rum and spirits sector.

Welcome to a new story!

Larissa Arjona: Seeing Rum Beyond the Bottle

Deeply connected to her Panamanian roots—where rum represents tradition—Arjona advanced rapidly at Ron Abuelo while designing strategies to expand the brand’s global presence.

However, what initially seemed like a purely corporate challenge soon evolved into a deeper discovery. Through her work, she began to see beyond the product and beyond the bottle, uncovering the stories, symbolism, and cultural layers that shape the rum category.

“When I began working on the international expansion of Ron Abuelo, I understood the richness behind every bottle: tradition, technique, time, and territory,” Arjona explains. “Over time, I discovered that I was not only passionate about the product but also about telling its story, opening new markets, and helping position rum as a sophisticated and respected category within the spirits world. I also recognized the enormous potential surrounding origin, rum tourism, and the cultural experiences that can be built around the category.”

This attention to detail—and her own experiences as a woman in the industry—led Arjona to notice a recurring issue: many women’s contributions lacked the visibility they deserved. That realization planted the seed for a new path where extraordinary work could finally stand out.

The Birth of Women Leading Rum & Spirits

Arjona envisioned a platform capable of connecting and highlighting women shaping the rum industry.

“I felt there was a missing space—a platform that could bring together women contributing talent, leadership, and vision to this industry. A community that would not only connect them but also elevate their work, provide visibility, and amplify the impact many of them were already making.”

The initiative launched through TheRumLab in 2018 under the name Women Leading Rum, initially as a directory highlighting women across the rum sector.

At that time, Arjona and her team—led by Alexandra Alfaro, Angélique Julienne, and Natally Andersson—identified a clear need: spotlight women already occupying key roles as master blenders, founders, CEOs, and brand ambassadors who rarely appeared in public conversations about the industry.

Today, the Women Leading Rum & Spirits leadership team includes:

Over time, the team realized that women’s impact extended far beyond rum. Two years ago, they expanded the initiative into Women Leading Rum & Spirits, broadening its mission to cover the entire spirits industry.

“This transition allowed us to strengthen our mission and expand our impact,” Arjona explains.

Today, the platform offers mentorship programs, partnerships with sponsors, and spaces for dialogue where women play a central role.

The Evolution of Women’s Roles in Spirits

In recent years, Arjona and her colleagues have witnessed a clear transformation.

Women have moved from less visible roles into strategic positions across technical, creative, and executive areas. They now contribute actively to blending, distillation, innovation, marketing, and brand leadership.

Industry reports increasingly highlight these contributions, noting how women lead projects, earn international recognition, and introduce fresh perspectives into product and brand development.

Key Areas of Progress

Arjona points to three areas where the change stands out most clearly:

• Technical leadership: more women lead blending, quality control, and distillation processes.
• Executive roles: women increasingly manage departments, brands, and business units.
• Brand representation: the number of female brand ambassadors and international spokespersons continues to grow.

These developments align with broader global trends that recognize women’s contributions to innovation, storytelling, and strategic leadership within the spirits sector.

From Dream to Reality

Over time, many once-distant aspirations have turned into reality.

“Today we see women leading award-winning blends and holding historic positions within rum and spirits houses,” Arjona notes. “They are receiving international recognition for their technical and creative contributions, gaining visibility as the faces behind distilleries and brands, and launching their own companies and projects.”

These milestones demonstrate a structural shift in the industry and confirm that female leadership continues to gain visibility and recognition.

How Greater Representation Is Changing the Industry

As women gain influence across the sector, the WLRS team has observed several positive transformations:

• More diverse and representative storytelling
• Balanced teams incorporating new perspectives in innovation, sustainability, and strategy
• Greater female participation in panels, conferences, and decision-making spaces

For Arjona, these changes strengthen the industry as a whole and create a more inclusive and competitive ecosystem.

Women Leading Rum & Spirits and the “Purple Cape”

Like superheroes, the WLRS team approaches each day as a new challenge. Every step forward strengthens the industry and helps close persistent gaps.

Despite clear progress, Arjona acknowledges ongoing challenges. Women still face limited representation in senior leadership roles, restricted access to influential networks, and cultural barriers in some markets.

“Our commitment focuses on creating real opportunities for women to grow, lead, and build businesses in the sector,” she says.

The organization pursues that goal through three core initiatives:

• Mentorship programs that connect experience with emerging talent
• Structured visibility through content, directories, and industry conversations
• Strategic partnerships with sponsors that support education and professional development

The Future of Women Leading Rum & Spirits

Arjona and her team envision Women Leading Rum & Spirits as a global reference platform with a strong community and programs that support professionals at every stage of their careers.

“In the coming years we will expand our mentorship cycles, strengthen the benefits of our network, and develop new partnerships with distilleries, festivals, educational institutions, and international organizations committed to female leadership.”

One of the next major steps will be the organization’s first Bootcamp in the Canary Islands, developed in collaboration with Ron Arehucas.

“The Bootcamp will bring together women from different countries for an intensive training experience where they can learn, connect, and develop key skills in an immersive environment,” Arjona explains.

This program will launch a broader initiative of in-person training experiences that WLRS hopes to expand worldwide.

A Message for Women and the Industry

Throughout her career, Arjona has learned that education, curiosity, and collaboration remain essential for professional growth.

“Understanding the industry in its entirety—from production to marketing, hospitality, and international trade—opens doors and provides a more complete vision of the sector.”

She also emphasizes the importance of building strong networks that include colleagues, bartenders, producers, and industry professionals.

The WLRS platform benefits from sponsorship from leading companies such as Bacardí, Planteray, Ron Abuelo, Botran, Ron Centenario, Ron Arehucas, Citadelle Gin de France, Xibal Gin, Pedro Mandinga Rum, Barceló, Rhum Barbancourt, Ron Millonario, Ron Tepuy, Canaïma Gin, Cocuy Saroche y Bacan.

Along with partners including TheRumLab, Ultimate Awards, Rhum Fest Paris, Panamá Rum Fest, Rum Fest Colombia, Rare Spirits Society, Morillas, Studio Guild, Ladies Who Tiki, Latin America Cocktail Championship and Asociación Iberoamericana de Ronmeliers.

“In the end, great industries are not built individually but through communities that share knowledge and support one another,” Arjona says.

She also hopes the rum category will continue gaining recognition as a complex and sophisticated spirit.

“Rum has extraordinary historical and technical richness. It still has a long road ahead in terms of global recognition.”

Making the Extraordinary Visible

Looking ahead, Arjona hopes that leadership roles for women will eventually become the norm rather than the exception.

“I would like to contribute to a future where seeing women in high-level leadership and decision-making positions feels completely natural. If that becomes the standard in a few years, then the effort will have been worthwhile.”

More than a professional role model, Larissa Arjona represents how solidarity among women can break barriers and illuminate the courage, effort, and talent shaping the future of the spirits industry.

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