Interview with Guim González Lleal, a Planet Expat Alumni. He is the co-founder of Blumen, part of Start-Up Chile Generation 16. He holds an MSc from HEC Paris and a BBA from ESADE Business School.
First of all, congratulations on the creation of your company – Blumen! Tell us about it
Blumen is a mix between Quora and TripAdvisor focused in the higher education industry. We want to become a platform where both students and universities can interact openly, ask questions and clear out doubts.
How would you describe your Planet Expat experience and what has been the impact in your professional career and concretely into Blumen’s project?
The Planet Expat experience added a lot of value in my career. When I graduated I wanted to find an internship in Latin America and Planet Expat provided me with the resources to accomplish my goal. Planet Expat can connect you with meaningful startups and great founders. My biggest takeaways from my experience at Fundacity would be a first-hand experience in digital business creation and a strong network in the entrepreneurial Chilean ecosystem. To sum up, that experience was key to acquire the skills that have been necessary for the early days of my startup.
What would you say is the best thing about co-founding a startup?
The best part of being a co-founder is having the possibility of turning an idea into a new product and seeing it evolve.
Why did you choose Santiago over other destinations to settle down Blumen?
After working at Fundacity in Santiago in 2013, where I found an internship through Planet Expat, I met my co-founder and got to know the startup ecosystem in Santiago. Two years later, I decided to come back and start Blumen. I thought that Santiago would be the perfect place to develop the product and find some funding.
From a professional and personal side, how beneficial do you think international experiences are?
I think international experiences force you to develop your personal skills. Being able to interact with people from different backgrounds is important, especially today when the world is so globalized.
Thanks Guim for your time. We wish you all the best in your new adventure!
To learn more about their endeavour check their Facebook Page.