Letters From a Startup Founder: The Intro

Hi, my name is Alejandro Magallanes. I’m a super competitive nerd that loves tacos too much.

4 years ago, I was an overconfident college grad with the idea that starting a business was easy. Well, I was WRONG!

In hindsight, the businesses I had been around during my younger years were a little different than the real world. When I was 10 years old, living in Queretaro, Mexico, I learned how to make Sushi. That was my first business. To this day, I still claim that I had the most profitable sushi business EVER. I would use my dad’s money to buy the groceries, my mom would help me cook the sushi (she did all the hard work), and I would go sell the sushi for 20 Pesos a roll to all of my dad’s employees. Who wouldn’t buy sushi from the boss’ 10-year-old son? It was a win-win-win! I would keep 100% of the profit and start the process again next time I needed money.

As a 22-year-old graduate, I thought the business world would pretty simillar to my previous Sushi business. I started my first business, and like most, failed. Then I decided to take a shot at a second business, well, that one closed too.

But stubborn determination would not let me stop. After all, “THIRD TIME IS THE CHARM”.

After winning a 3-minute pitch competition at the WT Enterprise Center, I decided to use the $2,000 to start 314 EasyMath. That was the first step of a beautiful journey that in some way, shape, or form has reached every continent in the world.

I’m a strong believer there is no such thing as “a self-made person.” That’s why I decided to step back, contemplate, and write a 6 blog mini-series, “Letters From a Startup Founder.” A weekly blog thanking everyone that has made this journey possible.

Thank you to everyone! For the people that believed in me from the beginning, the ones that pushed me to step outside of my comfort zone, the people that let me borrow $80 so I could see my family, and even the ones that let me crash on their couch, I have so many thanks to give to all of you!

I hope you enjoy and be on the lookout for the first letter in the series.

“A LETTER TO ALL WHO BELIEVED”