New start-ups, developments and port upgrades were among the most frequently viewed stories for the year from Latin Business Daily.
1. Latin American challenges are also seeds of start-ups: YouNoodle CEO
Latin America is a great place for startups and entrepreneurs, with its natural resources and culture, YouNoodle CEO Torsten Kolind said.
"Across Latin America, there are barriers to start businesses, not just bureaucratic, but also to access infrastructure, finance and communications," Kolind said in a phone interview with Latin Business Daily.
"But in Latin America, there are two types of inefficiencies. The country-wide systemic barriers which are bureaucratic like those to register companies or to manage taxes, and then there are those individual ones like difficulties for transactions which do create start-up opportunities,¨ Kolind said.
2. Bicycle delivery service Geobici sees fast expansion
Geobici started in March and has seen success in Lima, Peru. The company has 13 cyclists and 15 fixed clients.
“Since March, we have covered more than 12,000 kilometers in deliveries,” 31-year-old co-founder Andreina Urriola told Latin Business Daily.
“We have the vision that within 18 to 24 months, we can have 50 to 60 cyclists rolling all over Lima,” Urriola, who studied marketing and previously worked for a financial company, said. “We are getting two new clients per month, and if this continues, we can have 40 to 50 clients within 24 months,” Urriola said.
3. Colombian Developer Juan Carlos Gonzalez to open luxury condos in South Florida
Colombian mega-developer Juan Carlos Gomez launched his first venture with South Florida Condominium Development
"Bay Harbor Islands has undergone such a transformation during the last couple of years and is a goldmine for new development," Robert Morales, Ability by Acierto’s vice president of operations, said. "This location brings the best that Bay Harbor Islands has to offer -- a prime location in the middle of one of South Florida's most in-demand communities and just a walk from the famous Bal Harbour beaches."
4. Puerto Rican filmmaker creates Spanish version of ‘The Little Prince’
Lorenzo Ortiz, Puerto Rican filmmaker, produced a Spanish-language and animated version of “The Little Prince.”
Ortiz's father read him the book in 1976, which was Ortiz’s inspiration.
“One year ago, when he was spending his last months of life, with the intention of helping to bring back enthusiasm to him, I started this work. It brought him much happiness,” Ortiz said.
5. Monsanto closing sugar cane business in Brazil
“We are constantly evaluating our portfolio and our growth perspectives," a representative of the Brazilian unit of Monsanto said. "After a careful revision, we decided to focus on our main businesses and exit the sugar-cane market, where we operate under the Cana Vials brand."
6. Salvadoran generation of fashion designers takes on world brands
Young fashion designers are taking on the worldwide brands by using their Salvadoran roots.
“We compete against world brands that have massive production and do so by selling quality with social responsibility,” Ayax Melara, 29, a Salvadoran who has been a fashion designer for three years, said.
7. Bank of America office opens in Rio de Janeiro
The new office opened Aug. 10.
“This move underscores our unwavering focus on clients and places us in closer proximity to those in Rio de Janeiro,” Rodrigo Xavier, country executive of Bank of America in Brazil, said. “Our expanded presence on the East Coast is also a testament to our long-term commitment to serving clients in Brazil – and the wider region – with the full scope of our platform."
8. Puerto Rico’s Ponce Port completes $250 million upgrade, eyes Caribbean market
The Ponce Port already received a $250 million upgrade and has additional plans for an $80 million industrial center.
“Before the work, the port had very old docks," Carlos Mejia, director of the Ponce Port Authority, recently told Latin Business Daily by phone. "It had been operating nearly 100 years and needed an upgrade. The depth was on average about 30 feet and now it has been expanded to a capacity of up to 50 feet, which not even the San Juan port has.”
9. Mobile telephone competition in Latin America could intensify
A study of mobile-phone competition found that there’s room for stronger competition in Latin America.
“The study was done to observe the behavior of clients when they change mobile operators and understand why some do not change,” Cristobal Salazar, digital world director of GfK Consumer Choices, said in an interview with Latin Business Daily.
10. Latin Trade Group announces BRAVO Award winners
Six CEOs of Latin American companies were recognized recently at the BRAVO Business Awards in Miami.
"This first group of corporate winners includes a remarkable selection of the finest business minds in Latin America today," Maria Lourdes Gallo, managing director of the Latin Trade Group, said. "We at the Latin Trade Group are delighted to shine a light on these winners, as we have done over the past 20 years with the BRAVO Business Awards, which have become the leading platform for recognizing excellence in the Americas, from the public and private arenas."
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