Edith Cuartas
Edith Cuartas is a seasoned financial strategist, entrepreneur, and legal professional, serving as CEO and Owner of ESQFresno & MEC Consulting LLC. Her career spans more than three decades across law, finance, and business leadership. She began her professional journey at just 20 years old in a prestigious Beverly Hills/Century City law firm, where she worked for 18 years. During that time, the attorney she worked for became a mentor and encouraged her to pursue formal education through UCLA Extension evening classes. This opportunity led to her certification as a paralegal through UCLA Extension, and she ultimately rose to become the executive director of the law firm, building a strong foundation in legal operations, litigation support, and executive management.
Following her legal career, Edith transitioned into the medical sales industry before establishing her own business, MEC Financial, approximately 35 years ago. Her decision to become an entrepreneur was driven by her desire for time and financial freedom to raise her children as a young mother and build a more flexible life. A proud high school dropout who later built a highly successful career through determination and continuous learning, she credits her early law firm experience with transforming her mindset and opening doors to long-term professional growth. Today, she specializes in financial planning for Baby Boomers and Generation X clients, with a focus on retirement strategies, living trusts, and financial education designed to empower future generations. She also conducts free financial workshops twice a week—Tuesdays and Saturdays—welcoming individuals and families who want to strengthen their financial knowledge and planning.
In addition to her financial practice, Edith leads a life coaching initiative called Empowered, Selected, and Qualified (ESQ), where she mentors young mothers and individuals striving to rebuild or elevate their lives. She works with 10 to 15 financial and insurance companies to design customized strategies tailored to each client’s personal goals, dreams, and long-term needs. Following the sudden loss of her husband 20 months ago, she has become even more committed to raising awareness around life insurance and estate planning, having experienced firsthand the importance of proper preparation. Her mission is centered on education, empowerment, and legacy-building—helping people retire earlier, reduce financial dependency, and create lives defined by freedom, purpose, and generational impact.
• Certified Paralegal at UCLA
• Certified Retirement Specialist
• Life Insurance Senior Broker
• Business Administration Instructor
• UCLA Extension - Paralegal Certification
• Business Administration Vocational College Instructor
• Life, Accident, Health State License
• Top 5 Single Woman Golf Score Award from Integrity Marketing Group (January 2025)
• Million Dollar Annuity Circle award and member by PHP Agency
• Iron Woman of the Year award 2024 from Conquistadors LLC
• Ambassador of the Donor Network
• Brand Ambassador of UEI College
• Teaching business administration at UEI College for Welfare to Work participants and formerly incarcerated individuals (7 years)
• Volunteer at The Lighthouse women's recovery center helping with resumes and mock interviews
• Animal rescue support
• Personal and Church related community services and assistance
• Annual Volunteer mission trips to visit orphanages, most recent 2026 Afrika
What do you attribute your success to?
I think my biggest achievement has been being a student, you know, being like a sponge and learning from everyone. It doesn't matter how much money you make, you can't be a know-it-all, you just know a lot, and that has gotten me through. That's gotten me through to, like, you know, talk to somebody and immediately know what they want. I invest every year in maybe two seminars a year - it's mandatory for me to be fed information so that I can grow and escalate my capacity. I've attended Tony Robbins and different seminars just to self-educate and grow as a person. That's what I've been doing my whole life - just continuously learning and growing.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would share the fact that entrepreneurship, especially in financial services, makes you - it gives you the independence and the opportunity to be a businesswoman, to be a momtrepreneur. That's what it does. If girls don't have kids, those are divapreneurs, and if they have their kids, they're momtrepreneurs. Financial services is one of the top 5 industries that produces millionaires, and that's a given fact. Every time I tell somebody to look it up, they always see we're always in the top 5 or the top 7. So they see that it's true, it's factual, and that's why the ladies decide to make it a career for themselves.