Degree in architecture from the Polytechnic University of Madrid, studies in Milan and with an MBA from IESE Business School, Co-founder of “La grieta On-line” and currently CEO of “Auara Social Company”, the first social company in the beverage sector in Spain and the first water brand in Europe to manufacture its bottles with recycled 100% material.
To start the day, the attendees shared, and in the format of elevator pitch, what their project consists of and they were able to leave their professional card, in this way, after finishing the session it was possible to carry out a networking and generate synergies between all of them more effectively.
In his speech, Antonio began by talking about his company Auara (in Ethiopian desert sand storm), “se are a social company, this type of company arises from the identification of a social or environmental problem and then looking for a sustainable model to solve it”
The business idea was born from work in several NGOs in which he discovered that the lack of water is one of the greatest indicators of poverty "700 million people do not have access to drinking water, which makes them lose schooling, access to jobs, etc..”
He told us about his business philosophy: “We reinvest our profits in social projects based on getting water to the communities. Our products are sustainable 100% PET”, “We self-impose an annual audit, review of our statutes and a transparency policy (with the QR code on the bottle label, users can find out about the projects we work on)”.
Speaking of his beginnings, he assured “It took us 2 and a half years to sell our first bottle, since we have entered a highly competitive market managed by large companies”, “We are not a watermark, but a way of life and a way of applying a social strategy to our products.”.
for the part of marketing and communication have followed a brand benchmark strategy with both anonymous and famous people: “Viral brand actions with anonymous and recognized ambassadors have helped us to be the brand with the most followers on Instagram”.
As a social enterprise, Auara reinvests all its profits in bringing water to the poorest: “As a social company we have carried out 24 projects in 12 countries and we have had a notable impact on plastic recycling”, speaking of his forecasts for the future:“500 projects to bring water to 200,000 people are the objectives that we have as a social enterprise in the next 5 years”.
Regarding the staff, he told us two important aspects that govern Auara: “A motivated team that shares the company's mission is capable of getting the best out of itself and giving its best ideas. We believe that it is the best for people and gives us a greater return for the project" and "The CEO must make those below do their job to the best of their ability, we must reverse the pyramid of command. We must understand leadership as service”.
Once the exhibition was over, the attendees shared a coffee and a session of networking in the common area of the vIvero of Moratalaz companies.
The event was broadcast live on our Facebook page, you can check the video of the session.
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