Melina’s story
Melina took part in our Road to Growth programme in Mexico from 2019-2020.
Melina, who took part in the Foundation’s Road to Growth programme in Mexico, runs an online marketplace. In this blog, she reflects how the Road to Growth programme grew her confidence.
“My name is Melina and I a run an online marketplace.
Before I set up the company, I studied business. I co-founded my business with a childhood friend to create an online marketplace for people to find trustworthy cleaners. We wanted to create a safe and regulated community for cleaners to be part of with many benefits as well as support, and to offer a quality and trustworthy services to clients.
I found out about Road to Growth through an email and applied during a year full of business changes full of questions about how we can grow. Road to Growth gave me the confidence and clarification to make the right decisions, as well as tools and knowledge so we could really understand the details.
Being a young female entrepreneur in Mexico means I have come across a lot of barriers due to inequalities, politics and the economy. There are lots of odds stacked against us. Road to Growth supported not only my business growth but helped me to find a like-minded community of ambitious women. Many of these women have shared similar challenges that we have overcome. Many of us have stayed in touch and we regularly share resources and opportunities.
The programme gave our business strong foundations, and confidence to pivot into and explore new markets. I created a great relationship with my mentor, which was very honest and for the best interest of the business. We are still in touch.
We’ve started to make changes in the business. We’ve grown into an online marketplace that is accessible and growing. We’ve rebranded and rebuilt our website, which has strengthened our identity. Now we have a hybrid model of employees and sub-contractors. We have a strong community of amazing workers that rely on us for opportunities. We want to support female independence and equality, as well as the economy and community.”
Our Road to Growth programme in Mexico formed part of our ambitious 100,000 Women Campaign
Since 2008, we’ve directly supported over 160,000 women like Sophie to grow and strengthen their businesses, and in turn support their families and communities. Now, our ambitions are growing, and you can help us achieve them: donate to our 100,000 Women Campaign today, so we can reach another 100,000 women by 2022. Road to Growth is highly scalable and adaptable, and the Foundation is actively seeking funding partnerships to launch it in new countries. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss potential partnerships!
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