The Sandbox has been established since January 2025, but today marks our hard launch.
Although we’ve been in business for eight months, we took a thoughtful, comfortable pace to build our foundation before going fully public. Today is an opportunity to showcase what it looks like when a small business grows intentionally, behind the scenes. To kick things off, meet the founders of Sandbox Collaborative Strategies.
Meet Gina Melso
Gina received her B.A. in Journalism with a focus in broadcast and media from Rowan University in Glassboro, NJ. Seeking an adventure from her life on the East Coast, Gina moved to Colorado in 2017 and accidentally became a “snowboard bum." After four years in the Rocky Mountains, she decided it was time to return to reality and moved to Denver.Her unique background stems from creating a personal brand on the internet, specifically on YouTube, Twitch, and TikTok. She has more than 10 years of experience working with nonprofits, small businesses, and most recently, a community college, creating content as a photographer, videographer, and internal/external communications specialist.
Gina, who is mostly a recluse, loves traveling the world, hanging out with her dog, Albert, snowboarding, surfing, paddle boarding, and landscape photography. Before jumping on board full-time at Sandbox, she bicycled through the streets of Sweden and Denmark, contemplating where life was ready to take her next.
Meet Kristina Retana
Kristina brings more than two decades of experience supporting organizations of all sizes. Unafraid to forge her own path, she launched her career at 17 as a legal assistant for a boutique law firm in downtown Miami. After earning her GED and beginning college, she worked as a marketing assistant at a forensic engineering firm, then stepped into the role of operations manager for a construction company. Six years later, Kristina returned to her legal roots—this time as a paralegal for her alma mater, where she championed the needs of fellow community college students.Over 13 years in higher education, Kristina discovered her passion for organizational strategy, communication, and marketing—skills she now brings to the heart of Sandbox.
Kristina holds an associate degree from Broward College and a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Communication from Florida International University. Born and raised in Broward County, FL, Kristina now lives in Colorado with her husband, Edgar, and their three children—Ethan, Emma, and Eleanora. When she's not supporting small businesses, homeschooling, or managing family life, she enjoys creative outlets like nail design as well as spending time snuggling up to her two Australian Shepherds and two tuxedo kitties. The Retana crew can often be found singing along to musicals, dancing in their living room, or battling it out over a board game.
Combined, we offer more than three decades of experience and expertise in business planning, developing organizational resources, building brand assets, and all aspects of multimedia marketing and advertising. To learn more about what we offer, check out the rest of our website or contact us.