For Torres, the moment still feels surreal.
“It feels like a big milestone, and at the same time I’m thinking, ‘Oh my God, what’s next?’” she told SanDiegoVille.
The upcoming runway presentation, scheduled for May 30 during Miami Swim Week, places the Pacific Beach brand alongside a curated selection of designers chosen from a large pool of international applicants. For a self-funded independent label operating out of a boutique storefront near Cass Street in Pacific Beach, the invitation represents a dramatic leap onto the global fashion radar.
Founded by Torres in 2025, Tulux Resortwear blends luxury swimwear aesthetics with fantasy-inspired storytelling, shimmer-heavy fabrics, Brazilian silhouettes, structured support systems, and a hyper-feminine visual identity rooted somewhere between beach goddess, nightlife glamour and tropical escapism.
The brand’s boutique opened June 23, 2025 at 4684 Cass Street in Pacific Beach, though Torres says the creative development behind Tulux began years earlier.
Born in Galveston, Texas and raised primarily in Guadalajara, Mexico, Torres spent years living between cities including London, Seattle, Houston and New York before eventually relocating to San Diego in 2020. She says the city’s coastal culture and atmosphere became deeply intertwined with the DNA of the brand itself.
“San Diego represented freedom, coastal energy, and possibility,” Torres explained. “That became part of Tulux.”
Long before launching a swimwear line, Torres was sketching fantasy-inspired characters and obsessing over costume and styling design as a child. Rather than gravitating toward traditional princess imagery, she found inspiration in stronger, more sensual female archetypes — characters like Jasmine, Esmeralda, Megara, Kida from Atlantis, mermaids, mythological goddesses, and confident pop icons like Shakira and Britney Spears.
That aesthetic eventually evolved into what Torres now calls the “Calypso Realms” universe behind Tulux, an intentionally immersive visual world combining desert tones, jungle textures, nightlife energy, shimmer fabrics, ocean fantasy and bohemian luxury.
Unlike many contemporary swimwear startups that focus on minimalist triangle bikinis, Torres built Tulux around a problem she personally struggled with: finding swimwear that felt fashionable while also offering real structure and support.
Today, Tulux designs prominently feature underwire cups, push-up shaping, adjustable backs, Brazilian-inspired cuts, shimmer textiles and body-enhancing silhouettes engineered to balance sensuality with support.
The current Tulux universe is divided into four themed collections: NYX, inspired by nightlife and festival culture; GODDESS, focused on feminine empowerment and sensuality; BALAM, built around earthy desert and jungle palettes; and CALYPSO, a colorful mermaid-inspired resortwear line emphasizing shimmer and ocean fantasy aesthetics.
Future collections are expected to expand into one-piece swimsuits with Colombian-style shaping, square-cut silhouettes, triangle tops and more moderate coverage options aimed at women seeking comfort without sacrificing style.
Every Tulux piece is personally designed by Torres and produced in Guadalajara, Mexico using premium fabrics sourced primarily through suppliers importing textiles from Brazil and Colombia, two countries widely respected for high-end swimwear manufacturing.
Producing the collections, however, has proven far more complex than many consumers might realize. Torres says one of the biggest challenges has been locating manufacturing partners capable of constructing structured swimwear with supportive cups and underwire systems, as many factories specialize primarily in simpler bikini construction. Each Tulux design reportedly undergoes extensive sample refinement and construction testing before production begins.
“Each swimsuit requires significant production time and craftsmanship,” Torres explained. “Producing hundreds of sets can take several months.”
Building the company independently has also presented personal and logistical challenges. Torres manages nearly every aspect of the business herself, including branding, creative direction, boutique operations, production coordination, social media, content creation and marketing — while simultaneously operating far from much of her longtime support system in Mexico.
In December 2025, Torres was also diagnosed with ADHD, something she says helped explain both her creative strengths and some of the difficulties she encountered while building the company alone.
“For me, ADHD became part of the creative engine,” she said. “It helped me imagine worlds, concepts, designs and stories - but it also brought moments where moving forward became very difficult.”
Despite those obstacles, Tulux has steadily built visibility online and within San Diego’s beachwear scene through bold editorial imagery, highly stylized campaigns and collaborations with Mexican influencers and creatives including Alexa Williams and artist Mich Azpeitia.
The Vogue runway selection now marks the brand’s most visible breakthrough to date.
While this will be Torres’ first runway presentation, she views Miami Swim Week not as a culmination, but as the beginning of a much larger vision. Long term, she hopes to expand Tulux beyond swimwear into a broader luxury resortwear and fashion label encompassing dresses, elevated beachwear and statement pieces designed around empowerment and self-expression.
“At its core, Tulux is about helping women feel confident, expressive, sensual and free,” Torres said. “It’s about embracing yourself unapologetically.”
As Miami Swim Week approaches, Torres admits the moment still hasn’t fully sunk in. But for San Diego’s growing independent fashion community, Tulux’s selection offers another reminder that globally recognized creative brands are increasingly being built far from the traditional fashion capitals — sometimes just steps from the beach in Pacific Beach.
Tulux Resortwear is located at 4684 Cass Street in San Diego’s Pacific Beach neighborhood. For more information, visit tuluxresortwear.com.
Originally published on May 25, 2026.
