Entrepreneurship in Soacha that inspires

By: Alejandro García Suárez – Advisory Office for Communications.

What began as a personal need ended up becoming a story of entrepreneurship, innovation and transformation. Julieth Johana Maca Romero, leader of the CAC Cultural Learning Field "Entrepreneurship and Innovation for Life" and coordinator of the Business Administration and Public Accounting programs at the Soacha extension, found in her own experience the inspiration to create "La Hermosa", an enterprise dedicated to the development of natural products for hair, body and facial care.

The initiative was born after she faced significant hair loss. This situation led her to seek alternatives and subsequently turn that need into a business opportunity. The project also became her thesis for her degree in public accounting, where she formulated the La Hermosa proposal, inspired by ancestral knowledge and formulas of indigenous communities, including the Muisca community of Soacha to which she belongs. “I started out of a personal need and ended up finding in entrepreneurship an opportunity to contribute to others,” Julieth explained.

The company develops products with natural ingredients and no industrial chemicals, designed especially for people undergoing or who have completed processes such as chemotherapy. Their proposal seeks to combine traditional knowledge with innovative production processes that respond to the needs of their customers.

From the degree project to your own laboratory

In 2018, Julieth decided to take her project to a new level and applied to the SENA Entrepreneurship Fund in Soacha. After the formulation and approval of the initiative, she obtained resources that allowed her to move forward in the creation of a cosmetic laboratory, as well as strengthen aspects related to infrastructure, hiring of personnel, inventories, records and business formalization.

Since then, La Hermosa has built a trajectory that combines entrepreneurship, expertise, and commitment to the region. The company's growth has also been accompanied by various certifications and awards. Its products have received the "100% % Products of Soacha" designation, awarded by the Municipal Mayor's Office, as well as seals from the Regional Autonomous Corporation of Cundinamarca (CAR) related to good agricultural, manufacturing, and commercial practices. These achievements are further complemented by support from SENA, SENAI Brazil, and SENOVA Tecnoparque, entities that have supported and recognized its sound production and manufacturing practices.

One of the most important moments in this journey occurred in 2018, when Julieth represented Soacha at a business roundtable in Costa Rica, with the support of SENA (National Learning Service). There, she had the opportunity to present her products to an international audience of more than 1,600 businesspeople. The experience allowed her to identify new opportunities, learn about business models, and return with ideas that later became actions to strengthen her company.

Today, La Hermosa has its own infrastructure for the production, manufacturing and marketing of its products, in addition to a digital community that exceeds 57,000 followers, many of them customers of the brand.

Julieth acknowledges that part of this strengthening has been possible thanks to participation in events such as Expo UCundinamarca, CAR (Regional Autonomous Corporation) venues, and activities promoted by the Soacha Mayor's Office. She also highlights the contributions of students from programs such as Business Administration, Public Accounting, Industrial Engineering, and Software Engineering, who, through academic exchange programs, have contributed improvement proposals related to inventory and other business processes. "The students have been able to access the lab and develop improvement plans; it's an experience where they learn and we also strengthen our processes," she noted.

Her connection with the University of Cundinamarca also allowed her to return to the Institution as a Knowledge and Learning Manager, bringing her business experience to the training and entrepreneurship spaces.

Currently, through the Digital Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CDEI) and the Cultural Learning Field "Entrepreneurship and Innovation for Life," he continues to strengthen his capabilities and contribute to other entrepreneurs in the university community.

From Soacha to Madrid

The story of La Hermosa continues to grow. Together with Jaime Ángel Zambrano, leader of the CDEI Digital Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Fusagasugá, Julieth has been working on a proposal to participate in the Best CEO Awards 2026 Madrid – Women Entrepreneur competition. The process yielded an outstanding result: La Hermosa was selected from among 95 international entrepreneurs to compete for the recognition of the best Colombian businesswoman. This selection now opens a new opportunity to take her venture to Madrid, Spain, where she hopes to represent Colombia, Soacha, and the University of Cundinamarca on an international stage.

Julieth's story demonstrates that entrepreneurship can be born out of necessity, but grow with discipline, knowledge, innovation, and perseverance. From Soacha, her project has become an example of how an idea can be transformed into a company, generate opportunities, and take the talent of the region to national and international stages.

For UCundinamarca, this experience also reflects the purpose of training individuals capable of transforming their knowledge into actions that contribute to the development of their communities. In this sense, the Transmodern Digital Educational Model (MEDIT) finds in stories like Julieth's a concrete expression of its educational commitment: to train Creators of Opportunities and

Active individuals, capable of understanding the needs of their environment, transforming knowledge into solutions, and generating impacts that extend beyond the classroom. Here, entrepreneurship also means innovating, serving, and transforming life from within the community.

More news from the Soacha Extension at the News Agency