Juan Vera joins me in this episode of Crossing Borders to talk about entrepreneurial business in Latin America. Juan’s experience as an engineer and CEO has helped him start several businesses, then scale those businesses from Colombia to Mexico and the United States. Listen to hear Juan share how he bootstrapped his early startups to eventually raising several million in venture capital, and everything he learned along the way.
Silicon Valley is no longer the only hotspot for startup activity. Many more startup hotspots are popping up across Latin America, and new programs are not only bringing life to local economies but also helping Latin American entrepreneurs tap into international networks.
I was part of Start-Up Chile’s pilot round in 2010, which was the pioneering equity free accelerator in the world. Chile’s government-backed and equity-free accelerator program is well known for producing a vast network and many startup success stories.
By 2015, Start-Up Chile led to over 1,500 new jobs, its successful graduates raised over $100 million, and the program changed the culture around startups in Chile.
Now, under the direction of executive director Rocío Fonseca, Start-Up Chile offers multiple programs, including The S Factory, designed uniquely for female founders. Through its successes, Start-Up Chile has demonstrated Latin America’s incredible potential and sparked a movement across the region. (more…)
Most people in Silicon Valley would not intuitively think of building startups in Guadalajara, Mexico. But Mak Gutierrez is part of a team working through Hackers and Founders to support and fund startups in one of the most historic cities in Latin America.
In this conversation, Mak and I talk about his background, how Science Fiction has influenced his thinking about the future and the role of tech in the world, and why Guadalajara is one of the best places in Latin America to start a company.
As I’ve featured Latin American entrepreneurs over the last 24 episodes I’ve learned more than anyone. The insights these entrepreneurs, investors and ecosystem builders in Latin America have are extremely helpful to anyone who’s looking to start their own company or grow an existing one.
I decided to share my key takeaways with you on this 25th episode, so what you’re going to hear is a shorter “best of” session featuring a handful of the great entrepreneurs I’ve spoken with over the last few episodes. I also take a few moments after each clip to share why I thought the advice shared is so valuable. And just in case you want to hear each of the interviews in their entirety, I’ve linked these great Latin American entrepreneur and investor names to their original episodes in the bullet point outline below.