The team

Upuia and Juliana first started working together in 2016, and in 2020 they felt it was the right time to form VAAI and help other business owners with their marketing needs. Since then, they’ve combined their skills in design, branding, and business strategy to create thoughtful, results-driven work for small businesses.

VAAI means to see, to envision (in Sāmoan).


  • Founder & Designer

    Juliana Stoy is a designer with a wide range of artistic skills, from web design to illustration and photography. She has a degree in Graphic Design from University of the Arts, London. Juliana loves working in close collaboration with her clients to creatively explore the potential of their business. She’s passionate about traveling and draws inspiration from different destinations and cultures.


  • Founder

    Upuia Ahkiong is a community organizer and leader. Her entrepreneurial history represents the vision she has for building businesses and groups as a massage therapist who helped develop Google’s massage therapy program. She then founded Silicon Valley’s first massage incubator, Kua Body LLC, in Los Altos and Pleasanton. In 2016, she created a grassroots non-profit organization WELA (Women Entrepreneurs Launch) to help support aspiring and active women small business owners in local communities. Upuia has a degree in Social Work and a Master in Counseling Psychology.

VAAI was built on the belief that every brand deserves a unique story and a visual identity that truly reflects their vision.