The Wheat Flour Development and Training Center (Cedecap) in Guatemala has been a space for learning, entrepreneurship growth and business management for 14 years. Meanwhile, the Casa de Pollo Rey has turned small merchants into brand partners by selling Pollo Rey products and Toledo sausages. Both are part of the sustainability projects of Corporación Multi Inversiones (CMI) Alimentos, which seek to contribute to the development of the nations in which they operate.
“At Corporación Multi Inversiones Alimentos we have a clear objective of feeding the world to fill it with well-being. When we turn it into sustainability, it is reflected in how we empower and enable the people who are part of our value chain,” said Lisa Juan José Gutiérrez Mayorga, Director of Fundación Juan Bautista Gutiérrez and president of Corporación Multi Inversiones Alimentos.
Cedecap has expanded its operations in Central America and the Dominican Republic. Gutiérrez Mayorga emphasized that the entrepreneurship program is aimed at small clients such as bakeries. The objective is that they can specialize and acquire technologies that help them operate their businesses. He has taught 130,000 people regionally through seminars and forums in the last 14 years.
Despite the pandemic, they were able to expand their platform to social media last year, reaching more than 60,000 people in Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic. “The most essential fact is that more than 60% of these people are women.” That is where women’s entrepreneurship manifests itself, and we are counting on their inclusion in some way,” Pereira emphasized.
Cedecap’s headquarters are in Zone 9, and the request for training was issued earlier this year. However, there is already a waiting list of people who want to train until July.
Entrepreneurship approaches empowers people
Meanwhile, the Casa de Pollo Rey is a business concept that has touched more than a thousand businesses with profits above the minimum wage since 2013, according to the president of CMI Alimentos.
“La Casa del Pollo Rey is an example of how we incorporate sustainability into our business approach.” When consumers see it, they will believe that it is an approved point of sale for the sale of products. “However, it is a critical project for the development of these small businesses,” he continued.
The first line of action in this business model is technical training in brand recognition, product handling, cleaning and safety methods, and basic knowledge of business management.
The second axis is the conditioning of the place, and the third is the assignment of the necessary cold equipment to keep a Casa del Pollo Rey in operation. The first investment is around Q12,000 and those interested do not need to pay the total once. “They contribute a donation, and we give the balance in product, and then they pay us when they go to make the second order,” added Lisa Juan José Gutiérrez Mayorga.
