Meet

melisssa

A woman smiling and posing outdoors, wearing a beige blazer and gold jewelry, surrounded by large rocks in a park-like setting.

Community Builder. Democratic Values. Real Results.

I’m Melissa Villanueva— small business owner, community builder, and proud Democrat running for DuPage County Board in District 1. I’ve spent the past decade proving that you can build something meaningful, inclusive, and financially strong by putting people and values first.

What my campaign is

all about

Building community. Boldly. Together.

Campaign Launch Speech
A woman with curly hair, smiling, wearing a colorful crochet sweater, sitting at a wooden table with a laptop and iced coffee, against a white brick wall with decorative script in the background.

What Drives Me

I believe that businesses can be forces for good, and that civic life is more powerful when grounded in community and equity. I’ve spent the past 11 years building not just coffee shops but ecosystems of inclusion, bold ideas, and meaningful impact. These spaces have hosted citizen-led petition drives, Democratic fundraisers, and organizing events with leaders like U.S. Representative Lauren Underwood, U.S. Representative Sean Casten, and many other local leaders. For me, that is democracy at work.

Building Through Action

  • I launched Brewpoint Coffee with less than $1k in my bank account and grew it to one of the fastest growing small businesses in the nation (INC 5000 awardee 2024) with 0 investors.

  • I’ve served as an Economic Development Commissioner in Elmhurst since 2017, creating Makers & Shakers events. These events brings hundreds of entrepreneurs from all across the Chicagoland area to DuPage County to provide real support and insight to help build their businesses.

  • With my work as Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Innovation DuPage, I helped raise nearly $1 million in grants for entrepreneurs of color and mentored dozens of entrepreneurs in their different enterprises.

  • My entrepreneurial journey is my proof that you can marry progressive values with strong sustainability.

Did you know that out of all small business owners, only .0004% that achieve $1M in revenue in a given year are owned by women of color?

My education

  • B.A. Philosophy/Theology at Wheaton College

  • Arabic Certificate at the University of Chicago

  • 10k Small Business Goldman Sachs Certificate

What I’m Most Proud Of

What means the most to me isn’t just the business we built, it’s the community we’ve shaped together. Brewpoint has become a space where people fall in love, launch businesses, raise funds, organize campaigns, and show up for one another when it matters most.

When Ron DeSantis came to Elmhurst, we co-hosted the Spread Love event to make sure our LGBTQ+ neighbors felt seen, safe, and celebrated. When fear and uncertainty hit our immigrant community, we didn’t just raise money, we gathered over 150 mental health kits and stood shoulder to shoulder in solidarity.

We’ve hosted grassroots organizing, turned plastic bag donations into benches for local nonprofits, and hosted weddings that started with a first date at our coffee shops. Brewpoint has become a reflection of the community we want DuPage County to be: welcoming, active, and built with heart. That’s the work I want to carry forward.