Zona Chilhué began during the pandemic with a simple idea: to share what the south of Chile has to offer. Since then there have been homemade logos, jars of garlic paste, long pauses and a comeback with more drive than ever.
June 2020
In the middle of the pandemic, stuck in Santiago without a job and far from Chonchi, I opened an Instagram account. I drew the first logo myself in Canva: a stilt house over the waves and a name that already said it all — “your Chilote corner”.
2020
I started by selling what I brought from the island: native potatoes, Chilote garlic, honey, jams, wool. Simple things, put together by hand, with something priceless: the soul of Chiloé.
2020
A paper bag, a label tied with twine and a sticker. That's how Zona Chilhué's first order went out, and I still remember how excited I was to deliver it.
September 2020
Together with my mom, we founded Comercial Zona Chilhue Ltda. with the dream of bringing the best of the south to the world. Our first own products were packaged Chilote garlic and garlic paste, plain and with merkén, a smoked chili from southern Chile.
December 2020
We wanted the brand to live up to what we were making, so we had the logo we still use today designed for us: the stilt houses, the boat and the handwritten lettering. With it came new labels for our garlic pastes in different flavors.
2021
We found customers on the island and reached Santiago through the Salmones Antártica stores, which became our main customer.
Then
The road was hard, life took us in other directions and the project went dormant. But we never fully let it go: every so often it came up again in conversations with my mom. We still think about making our garlic pastes again; it's been complicated, but the idea is still there.
Late 2025
I found myself without a job again, and this time I decided not to go back to the same thing. If I was going to bet on something, it had to mean something: Chiloé, the south, things made by hand.
Today
A place to discover what artisans and artists from southern Chile create: sheep's wool textiles, ceramics, native wood, illustration and flavors from the island. One-of-a-kind pieces, made without hurry, by real people who live in the south.
The idea is to keep growing little by little, bringing more Chilote hands into this shop.
