Thomas Allier is the cofounder of Viajala, which I like to call the Kayak of Latin America. Originally from France, he moved to Chile for Start-Up Chile and then moved to Colombia where he received investment from Mexican and Colombian venture capital firms.
Outline of This Episode
[0:12] Who is Thomas Ailler?
[4:10] Why Latin American airlines don’t share their data.
[6:19] How Thomas decided to attack the problems he’d experienced in travel in Latin America.
[8:22] Why Thomas was attracted to Startup Chile even though he was from France.
[13:50] The beginning states of the company in Chile and Colombia.
[20:43] What it is like day to day in Medellin, Colombia (where Thomas is based).
[25:17] Recruiting and finding talent in Medellin.
[28:19] The expansion efforts made to move into Mexico.
[33:54] Doing business in Mexico and Brazil as a Colombian company and why it’s better for a startup to keep things simple and centralized.
[36:50] The steps taken to expand into Brazil and Argentina.
[40:17] The reaction of Thomas’ family when he announced he was moving to Colombia.
[41:57] Thomas’ advice to American companies or founders considering Latin America.
[46:30] The challenges and strategies of working with a distributed team.
[50:37] Thomas’ advice to his younger self if he were starting over.
[55:04] Advice to those considering a startup.
[57:45] Resources Thomas recommends to other entrepreneurs.