For a decade the power of creativity and innovation has been revealed as necessary tools to have a globally competitive economy based on knowledge. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) pointed out that in the hands of creatives, designers, artists and entrepreneurs could be part of the answer to the development challenges of Latin America and the Caribbean.
All encompassed in the so-called orange economythat is, the set of activities that in a chained manner allow ideas to be transformed into goods and services, and whose value may be based on intellectual property, according to the IDB definition.
“The orange universe is made up of two parts: 1) the cultural economy and creative industries, at the intersection of which are the conventional cultural industries; and 2) the areas of support for creativity”, indicates the organization.
For this reason, it is important to promote creative and innovative entrepreneurs who seek to have a positive impact on society through their projects and ideas, a task carried out by Impact Hub, a global platform to support entrepreneurship.
For the last five years, Impact Hub, with the support of Fomento Social Citibanamex, has carried out a program called Emergente. The objective is to seek creative projects with a high social impact in various regions of the country and enhance their growth.
In five years, the program has supported 449 enterprises and granted financing for more than 900,000 pesos to 15 enterprises. The best projects receive training and visibility in different networks allied to both organizations. In the five-year period, 45 entrepreneurs have attended the finals organized in Mexico City.
“Emergent It is a program that we have been doing for five years. Its main characteristic is that we go looking for these projects in all regions of the country. We do not wait for them to arrive: we go to their communities and invite them to participate. We create spaces for them to present their ideas and we cover their transportation and per diem so that they can show their full potential and make the most of the program”, explains Mario Romero, Managing Director of Impact Hub Mexico City.
This program represents a unique experience of strengthening, linking, and exposure in Mexico City, since the ventures have the opportunity not only to receive high-value content from experts at the national level, but also to get closer to potential partners, clients, or allies. for your ventures; as well as key players in the entrepreneurial ecosystem to learn more growth opportunities.
Emerging 2023
For the Emerging 2023 edition, 503 applications were received, 55% women and 45% men, from 27 states of the republic. Eight regional events were organized in Bajío, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Jalisco, Yucatán, and three bootcamps in Mexico City for enterprises of entities in the central zone such as Morelos, Puebla, Querétaro, Veracruz, among others.
There was also a virtual event to concentrate innovative projects from other entities such as Sinaloa, Nuevo León and Tabasco. Through these events, the 10 best projects were selected, which participated in the last phase of strengthening, linking and exposure in Mexico City, in the categories Functional Design, Creative Services and Innovation for the creative industries.
Winners Emergent 2023
First place: Pinuela. Entrepreneurship from Yucatan that is dedicated to the production of sustainable beauty and hygiene products produced by women in search of a life free of violence, who received financial support of 100,000 pesos.
Second place: tanketa. Guanajuato company alluding to pet products created with sustainable material, where people with disabilities participate who were granted a stimulus of 50,000 pesos.
Finalists
Stop. Located in the municipality of Nezahualcóyotl, it is a triple impact enterprise that promotes employment for people in vulnerable situations through the manufacture of design accessories that fuse materials recovered from garbage with other vegan ones that represent Mexican culture and folklore.
Solidarity Fashion. From Puebla and with the support of Oaxacan communities, she fuses textile craft techniques with contemporary designs. His focus is employability and the valorization of the work of weaving workshops on pedal looms, cutting and sewing workshops.
Jituka. Originally from Yucatan, it is a brand that means the work of peasants and artisans who create different types of products made from huano palms. It also employs people with disabilities.
Lacanka. Chiapas social brand that preserves ancestral textile traditions through handmade bags with unique and avant-garde designs. They have the cause of creating a support network for vulnerable women, contributing to their personal growth and female empowerment.
Made in Bayú. Laboratory of ideas, accessories and experiences with socially responsible criteria. It proposes a creative reflection on the way in which we relate to everyday objects and some industrial materials that after their lifetime and after being intervened become unique pieces with their own identity that are reincorporated in a useful, original and sustainable way. to our daily life.
Nawal. Mexican brand that designs and produces ophthalmic and solar glasses to solve or protect people’s eyesight. They are made with recovered plastic waste.
BRING. Brand of wooden bags from Los Altos de Chiapas. Passionate about the authenticity that each of the pieces generates in its shape and design, resulting in a unique and original accessory.
4ever3. Eco-friendly brand dedicated to creating furniture with wood recovered from the circular economy, made seriously and not in series, based on innate knowledge of the generation.
The great challenge in the medium and long term for the Emerging program consists of continuing to search in various regions of the country for ventures that generate a great social impact so that they can expand to other regions.
Marisol Garcia Fuentes Editorial Director Emprende and Emprendedor.com. I am motivated by stories of tenacity and innovation.