Lauro Meléndrez Parra, CEO of the Sinaloa Economic Development Board was invited by the same body he chairs to share his working life, on how he has achieved the success he’s enjoyed after founding Farmacon.
It’s Chapter 9 of CodeTalks, and it’s a place where entrepreneurs tell their stories of entrepreneurship, and today, who’s the face of Codesin, shares their business story.
In entrepreneurship as in life, one must learn from failures, and know how to confront and reverse them, in the case of Lauro, his failure has not been accepted in the major of medicine, a profession that he studied in part to satisfy his family.
“In the family, we come from a rural environment, and there was always an admiration for the doctors and I wanted to please my relatives in a way that I chose to study medicine. I did it with great luck, they accepted me into UNAM when it was very difficult to enter, I finished with a good average, 93, the problem started When I took an exam to do a major and it wasn’t accepted, I always said that I was unacceptable because they had submitted more than 10 thousand and accepted I think a thousand, ”he shares.
“I decided that instead of taking the exam here in Mexico, go to the US, they told me how much I got, I got 67 percent and I turned 75, the language was an important barrier, and I could have done it again but then I went back to Mexico, and I already had A daughter and we decided to start a pharmacy, taking advantage of the fact that my family was a lifelong merchant. I was born in a grocery store and I was a doctor, ”he adds.
This is how Farmacia el Continental was born in 1985 and in 1997 it changed into what it is known today, Farmacon. The path was not easy and it would recommend to anyone seeking to do it while working 24/7 on that project, we don’t describe the procedures, because if not, there would be no other way to achieve success, besides not doing it. To be defeated by the first setback in your project.
“ Entrepreneurship is not an easy thing, in the beginning, you have to have a profession, which I had, because I was born to buy and sell products even experimentally, if you were not created in a commercial environment, then it is definitely more difficult … What gave us success over time was perseverance, and management of frustration, because there are many obstacles to be overcome in undertaking and ultimately the desire to improve learning. “
“The work culture in my case was very low, and fortunately, I was invited to ICAMI, and there I found the training, with the business culture, and then I joined organizations like the Chamber of Commerce, which, by asking other board members, I was learning … from there. I have been invited to the sales executives, who every Saturday we have expert guests on various topics, it is very important to train in the skills that allow you to manage the back office as they say now, because if not, you will remain as a personal businessman, which is good if you want to That, but this is not because you wanted and could not because you lack the skills that you can acquire in universities, “he adds.
A vital thing to do is cultivate, just as Lauro has done for years. He realizes that money to start a business is important, but it is not what determines success or not, the most important thing is to have a good business plan, which is why for him, to start a business you do not necessarily need to be rich.
“There are myths that you need to be very rich to start a business, and I think that you do not have a lot of resources in the beginning, but rather to have a good idea, a good business plan, and start to implement this business planning with your own resources or family loans, Since the business is running or you have a clearer plan, it is easier to access the credits or angel investors, because they invest their money where the financial viability is with the least amount of risk, so they will do so that do not support ideas that a business plan does not support, ”he says.
Meléndrez Parra offers his latest advice for those who want to do just that. He calls on them not to give up, but above all, to be aware that 100 percent of those who start a company, 3 percent at most manage to become a millionaire, about 7 percent live well from this business, 90 percent Cent often fails.
“Once you start giving yourself 100 percent for this project, because starting a business does not mean being half-measures, or in keeping with everything, and you’d better find yourself a 9 to 5 job in a company that allows you to live well. , Because the commitment is a big commitment, because regardless of having to make an effort, you must have the ability to form task forces, and to comply with the law, which are many requirements. “
“Not all of those who take charge become millionaires, the percentage is very low, out of 100 who fail 90 percent, and out of those ten who get rich, let’s say a number, I don’t think more than two or three percent, eight percent. Others are living well and this is not bad, but becoming a millionaire through undertaking is unlikely. “
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