Category: Chile

Elite Chilean Ambition

Category : Chile
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One of the biggest things I’ve noticed working and living in Chile over the past five years is that most Chilean elites have a very different attitude toward business than US business people do.

In the US, most business people, even those with vast fortunes, are extremely driven. Whether they’re driven to make more money, for more recognition, for more power, to make the world a better place, or for their own entertainment, most US business people are always looking for the next challenge. They want to expand, to try new things, to make more money.

If they own the 5th biggest mortgage business in the US, they’re likely working their ass off and are very motivated to try to grow to #4. If they own the second biggest Honda dealership in the greater Milwaukee area, they’re doing everything they can to get to #1. And they’re busting their butt every day because they know all of the people with smaller businesses are gunning for their spot. And so are new entrants into the market. In short, US business people are extremely ambitious because they both fear competition and want to grow to make more money, leave a legacy or just because they enjoy it.

In the US, we celebrate rags to riches stories. (more…)

Why is Chilean Customer Service so Bad?

Category : Chile
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Over the past two weeks, I’ve eaten at three restaurants in Santiago that had incredible customer service. I was so surprised by good service that I had to compliment the waiter at each restaurant and got to talking with each one. What did they have in common?

One was Uruguayan, one was Peruvian and the other was Venezuelan. The Uruguayan waiter told me that he makes about 80% more than his Chilean coworkers because he’s nice to people and tries to go the extra mile. The Peruvian waitress was so nice, warm and got everything right and said that she counldnt undestand why service was so much worse in Chile than in her home country. The Venezuelan waiter was incredibly attentive and got everything right. His Chilean partner gave zero fucks, forgot parts of the order, disappeared for long periods of time and added two extra items to the bill.

Chilean customer service is the worst I’ve experienced in all my travels. I’ve been all over South America, North America, Europe and parts of Africa and the Middle East and Chile (more…)

The VAT Trap: Why Is Chile’s VAT System So Poorly Setup?

Category : Chile, Entrepreneurship
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Chile’s VAT system doesn’t make sense. Once you are in the system, the reporting system is world class and has been ranked in the top five in the world for ease of use. The Chilean IRS’ website works incredibly well, is fast, reliable and makes paying your taxes a breeze. It blows the US system out of the water and it’s not even close.

But getting legally approved by Servicio Impuesto Interno (the Chilean IRS) is a bureaucratic, capricious, time consuming process that doesn’t make any sense. After the long and complicated process to incorporate and get a bank account (that I’ve talked about before), you need to get your boletas (receipts) and facturas (official invoices) so that you can legally sell and pay your taxes. (more…)

Full Stack Startups in Latin America are a Massive Opportunity

Category : Chile, Entrepreneurship, Latin America Startups and Investing
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Latin America is the perfect market for full stack startups. I’m convinced of it after living and working in Latin America for the past four and a half years and am even more convinced after having met, worked with and reviewed over 600 startups in the past year and a half as managing partner of Magma Partners in Santiago, Chile.

So what is a full stack startup and why am I convinced that Latin American entrepreneurs should be exploring full stack startup business models?

First, lets start with a definition. Chis Dixon coined the term Full Stack Startup in a blog post in March 2014. He says that a full stack startup is a  “…complete, end-to-end product or service that bypasses existing companies.” It bypasses the old, existing hierarchy to be able to control the entire experience. According to Dixon:

Prominent examples of this “full stack” approach include Tesla, Warby Parker, Uber, Harry’s, Nest, Buzzfeed, and Netflix. Most of these companies had “partial stack” antecedents that either failed or ended up being relatively small businesses.

So why are companies following the full stack method instead of the old school method of partnering with large companies? (more…)