We’re looking forward to introducing you to Samantha Karina Regalado . Check out our conversation below.
Samantha Karina , it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
After 13 years in business, there is so much to be proud of. I have built my business and brand from absolutely nothing. I was a 24-year-old trying to put myself through school while making ends meet, and It’s in the Filling! began in the kitchen of my home with no plan—just an idea and the determination to see where it could go.
The journey has been anything but easy. Every step I’ve taken to get to where I am today has come with challenges, growth, and lessons that have shaped me into the person and the business owner I am now.
I could write for days about all the moments that make me proud, but by the time this is published, It’s in the Filling! will have officially gone live on all four primary news stations in San Diego. I’ve had the honor of being chosen to represent the events I participate in through my brand—an opportunity that still feels surreal.
It may not seem monumental to everyone, but to me, it is everything. I reached this point through my own work, my own sacrifice, and sheer persistence. I built this business before social media became what it is today and knowing that I did all of this from the ground up remains one of the proudest achievements of my entire journey.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Samantha Karina Regalado, and I am the heart behind It’s in the Filling!—a traveling pop-up bakery that I started 13 years ago in the tiny kitchen of my home. Back then, I was a 24-year-old trying to put myself through school, juggling bills, dreams, and survival. I didn’t have a roadmap or a grand business plan. I just had an idea, an oven, and the belief that maybe—just maybe—something beautiful could come from nothing.
Over the years, It’s in the Filling! has grown into so much more than a bakery. It has become a piece of my identity, a reflection of my heart, and a symbol of every challenge I’ve overcome. It’s built on late nights, early mornings, long drives between cities, emotional breakdowns, unexpected victories, and the unwavering support of the people who believed in me when I couldn’t believe in myself.
What makes my brand unique is that it was never created to be “perfect.” It was created to be real. Every pastry, every filling, every pop-up is infused with intention, nostalgia, and connection. I don’t just bring baked goods to different cities—I bring my story, my energy, and the same love that got me through the hardest seasons of my life.
As a one-woman show for many years, I learned every aspect of this business the long way. The honest way. The hard way. And that’s what makes It’s in the Filling! special: it is authentic from start to finish. People don’t just support my business—they become part of my journey.
Today, I’m continuing to grow, to travel, and to push myself into spaces I once only dreamed about. I’m honored to now share my work on larger platforms, including features across all four major news stations in San Diego. And even after all this time, every event, every customer interaction, and every “I drove here just for you” moment reminds me why I started.
This brand is my story—and I’m grateful every day that I get to share it.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
My mom.
There are not enough words in this world to capture what she has been for me. She has believed in me with a strength so fierce that it has held me together when I felt like I was falling apart. She has been my light in every dark chapter, my steady hand when everything else felt uncertain, and the one constant source of love through every season of my life.
My journey has never been easy. I’ve stumbled, broken down, and had more moments of doubt than I can count. But my mother has stood beside me through all of it—fighting with me, fighting for me, and refusing to let me give up on myself.
I’ve lived with chronic depression since I was 16 and have spent years questioning my worth, wondering if I would ever become someone, I could be proud of. Yet even in the moments when I couldn’t see a future, she saw one for me. She has always seen me—my heart, my potential, my goodness—even when I felt undeserving of love. She held on to me when I didn’t have the strength to hold on to myself.
I owe so much of who I am to her. Her love has been my foundation, her belief has been my fuel, and her presence has been the quiet miracle that has carried me through some of the darkest parts of my life. I am endlessly, profoundly grateful for her. She isn’t just my mother—she is my lifeline, my safe place, and the reason I am still standing today.
When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
As a teenager, I lived in constant fear that someone would discover I was struggling with chronic depression. At the time, it felt like another failure—another burden I had to carry alone. I convinced myself that staying silent was safer than being judged.
Over the years, that silence became something I wanted to break not just for myself, but for others. I began using my platform to speak openly and honestly about mental health, reminding my followers that depression is real, that it is nothing to be ashamed of, and that they never have to navigate it alone. I have reached a place in my life where I am strong enough to say, without hesitation: yes, I deal with it too.
I have lived with depression for 21 years, and I am living proof that with support, compassion, and perseverance, it does get better. Today, I choose to use my story to give strength to someone who might feel unseen or unheard. I speak up for the girl who is terrified to admit she is struggling, for the person who believes they will never become someone worthy, and for everyone silently fighting their own battles.
My goal is to let people know they are not alone, and that I am always here—ready to listen, ready to support, and ready to remind them that their story doesn’t end where their pain begins.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
My closest friends would say that what matters most to me is authenticity, connection, and purpose. They know I pour my heart into everything I do—my relationships, my work, my community—and that I value people on a deep, genuine level. They would tell you that I care fiercely about showing up for others, creating safe spaces, and making sure the people around me feel seen, supported, and understood.
They also know how much my personal growth, my mental health journey, and my passion for my business mean to me. Whether it’s It’s in the Filling!, my family, or the people I meet along the way, my friends would say that I’m driven by love, gratitude, and the desire to make a positive impact wherever I can.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
The story I hope people tell about me when I am gone is that I lived my life with heart. That I loved fiercely, showed up fully, and gave my best to make others feel seen, valued, and cherished.
I hope they say I was someone who turned pain into purpose—who met struggles with honesty and courage, and who used my own journey as a way to lift others higher.
I want to be remembered not simply as someone who existed, but as someone who made people feel: feel supported, feel inspired, feel less alone. Someone who chased her dreams boldly, even when the path was difficult, and who shared her light generously—even on the days she was fighting to keep it burning for herself.
Above all, I hope the story told is that I loved my family, my friends, my community, and my work with everything I had. That I left kindness behind in every space I entered. That I made life a little sweeter—not only through the desserts I created, but through the way I treated people.
If that is the story they carry forward, then I will know I lived a meaningful life.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: www,instagram.com/itsinthefilling
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/itsinthefilling1
