Third Entrepreneurship for Life Meeting

The Administrative Director of the Girardot Branch, Juan Carlos Méndez Forero, led the Third Entrepreneurship for Life Meeting, in a space to talk among friends, to share experiences, learn from each other and learn about the support available for entrepreneurs with the invited mentors.

The invited mentors who provided guidance, recommendations, and motivated the creation of businesses thanks to their knowledge of the support available to students, graduates, and the community in general when deciding to start a business. The guests at this working session were: from an academic perspective, Dr. Henry Alberto Matallana, Academic Vice-Rector of the Piloto University and Co-Director of the Network of Universities of the Upper Magdalena – RUAM; Dr. Laurentino Carranza, Rector of the Gimnasio Real school and Coordinator of the Business Administration program at UCundinamarca; Dr. David Correa, Director of SENA Girardot; Professor Eunice, who leads entrepreneurship processes at SENA; Dr. Leandro Felipe Mendoza from municipal economic development; and Professor Omar Quijano, leader and entrepreneur.

Likewise, the director acknowledged and thanked the administrative staff of the Girardot branch for their work and support at this event, who participated and assisted with the logistics at all times.

Success stories

Diana Fernanda Chaparro, a graduate of the Business Administration program at UCundinamarca, is the founder of Minimarket Juanes. She explained that due to health reasons, she had to resign from her job, and when the pandemic hit, she saw an opportunity to start a business with her husband.

Located in the La Estación neighborhood of Girardot, Minimarket Juanes sells groceries, fruits, vegetables, meat, and other items. “We’ve gradually introduced more products for sale; we’re at 80%, but we still have a way to go,” said the entrepreneur, who has always been interested in marketing products and acknowledged that thanks to the training she received at UCundinamarca, she was able to start and grow her business. This venture currently provides two jobs.

Environmental Engineer Gian Carlo Cabrera, a 2017 graduate of UCundinamarca, asserts that his restaurant will be "Andrés Carne de Res's competition." He started selling sandwiches at the university while a student, gradually developing a passion for gastronomy.

While studying for his degree, he chose to become a meat expert, and from there a talent emerged, as he calls it. The engineer took the initiative to open his restaurant, Bariloche, in 2015, inspired by the gaucho city renowned for its meat preparation. Some time later, he decided to open a branch.

In 2017 it opened in Mesa Cundinamarca, then came the challenge of Bariloche Girardot, in the Granada neighborhood where it competes with big brands, but none with the quality of its cuisine.

Certified meats, cocktails, event celebrations, live shows, and a wide variety of culinary delights—today, he's proud to be a student at UCundinamarca. He survived the pandemic and reinvented himself to keep striving to go further and grow the brand. This venture currently generates 33 jobs.

The graduate has just opened Aborigen, his fourth restaurant, spanning over a thousand square meters and focused on preserving the indigenous culture of Cundinamarca. “Perseverance is what allows man to transcend,” is his motto.

Yurany Rocío, a graduate of the Nursing program at UCundinamarca, opened Darsalud SAS, a healthcare provider (IPS), after recognizing the need for a center that treats chronic illnesses and provides home care, among other services. “Home care services were being provided by healthcare providers outside of Girardot, so we saw that we had the human talent to do it,” she explained. This company began in 2019 and has been providing services ever since. This venture creates 12 jobs.

With the pandemic, the IPS grew, they have been able to reach more people in the municipality and provide nursing services, laboratories, general medicine, Covid treatment, they are located in the Granada neighborhood, they attend private patients and those from EPS.

Ángela María Fuentes holds a Bachelor's degree in Basic Education with an emphasis in Spanish and English. She provides consulting and advisory services to various individuals and resides in Carmen de Apicalá, Tolima. "I have worked with small groups at different educational levels, from preschool to adults, advising them in English," commented the graduate, who focuses her methodology on the strongest skills of the people she serves.

At Our Lady of Mount Carmel School, she teaches and offers tutoring to four different groups. She makes initial contact with the student, then begins the process, but they must go through all the different types of tutoring. She also provides virtual tutoring via Teams. This business generates 12 jobs.

At the end of the meeting, the mentors gave a presentation to motivate the young people at UCundinamarca to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams. They discussed support programs, funding opportunities, and other resources to show the students and graduates that starting a business is indeed possible.

The mentors and the administrative director congratulated these young people and thanked them for their work and for bringing honor to UCundinamarca.

To view the full broadcast, click on the following. Link

More news from the Girardot branch at the News Agency