Meet Michel Polania Sanchez | Entrepreneur & Bartender

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michel Polania Sanchez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michel, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I was born on May 18, 1995 in Medellin, Colombia. I only lived there for the first three years of my life before my family and I settled in Charlottesville, VA. A small college town located east of The Blue Ridge Mountains and home to the University of Virginia. I grew up more than fortunate with two hard working and loving parents within a tranquil environment. My father spent majority of his time working and doing his part to provide for us what I considered a normal American middle class lifestyle. My mother was a stay at home mom who took good care of my little brother and I. I can say that my upbringing was fairly easy to say the least. However, as I got older, I realized that because I had such a good childhood, that I never really faced any real adversity. I needed to see what I could do on my own essentially, without the support of friends and family. So, at 20 years old, I dropped out of college and moved to Denver with one of my good friends Vic. I can honestly say that I wouldn’t have developed to be the same independent man that I am today without pushing past my comfort zone and moving to this beloved state.

What should our readers know about your business?
I own and operate Chupacabra (Paletas LLC). The Chupacabra or Chupacabras is a legendary creature that has been rumored to eat farmers livestock in parts of Mexico, Central America, Puerto Rico, and even Texas for over two decades. It literally translates to ” The Goat Sucker”. Therefore, I decided to create the G.O.A.T paleta aka the greatest popsicle of all time. My company hand makes over 20 flavors of Michoacan Mexican style paletas. For those of you who aren’t familiar, Michoacan is a state in mexico where the best pops originate from. The majority of my product uses fresh fruit, local Royal Crest dairy, and pure cane sugar. I’m excited to be carrying this on as a family business that was inspired by my father and his recipes. It has now been over a year since Chupacabra started and can say it has not been easy by any means. Learning to do something on your own for the first time can house many challenges, fears, and sometimes doubts. I think the patience and perseverance that i’ve had has really payed off and I can really visualize where I can take this business. I would like to be recognized as a local brand that is bringing Latin culture to The Rockies. My goal is to appeal to an overall audience because I believe desert is universal. However, with having a different name and logo, I take pride in offering an unconventional brand design that provides a fun new age twist on a traditional artisan frozen treat product.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Restaurants :Denver Biscuit Co.
:Smokin Fins
:Guard & Grace
:The Original Pancake House
:Pizzeria Locale (Boulder)
: Barcelona
:Adelitas Cocina y Cantina
Places to drink
: Los Chingones in order to try a chupacabra cocktail paleta in your margarita!
:Avanti
:The Welton Room
:Forget Me Not
:Ghost Donkey
Hang Out
:Catch a Rockies game
:Go to a Red Rocks Show
:Mountain bike in Golden
: Check out Union Station
: Temple night club

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
As a young entrepreneur, I have to give the majority of credit to my father Birzayith Polania, or as most people know him, “Jimmy”. At a young age, my dad taught me the fundamentals of running your own business. The reason Chupacabra exists today is because it is inspired from his own ice cream concept “La Flor Michoacana”, back home in Virginia. He essentially gave me the blue print to create my own concept out here 1,600 miles west and 6 years after he started his company. His business won Best Ice Cream Shop in Virginia by Travel and Leisure in 2019.

Website: chupacabra303.com

Instagram: chupacabra_paletas

Facebook: Chupacabra Paletas