Innovation

Aurora Legorreta searches for artisans that deliver a unique representation of Mexico. “Regardless of their background, if they are talented and make high-quality and distinguished products - both traditional or not traditional ones - we want them on our team.” Aurora Legorreta cuts down intermediaries as much as possible, making sure both artisan and final customer get a fair price. The artisans state the price they want to receive for the object they are pouring their soul on considering it will be a long-term relationship with frequent purchases and 100% instant payment. This is in fact stated in the core values of the enterprise. The minute that the raw materials they need to create the objects increase prices, they report that in the next purchase, so they never reduce their margin. On the other end, Aurora Legorreta increases the demand of their products due to be the link with distribution channels that otherwise would be impossible for them to reach due to legal reasons.

Inspiration

In December 2008, Aurora Legorreta from Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico, had recently graduated as an industrial designer of ITESM Monterrey, one of the best universities in Mexico. Considering that, according to INEGI, the average population in Guerrero that is over 15 years old has an education up to the first year of high school, she thought that she had been blessed for this type of opportunity and advantage in life, so she needed to return that to her community, but how? Many of the population learn trades from their families or when they get married, some of them migrate and leave entire towns alone. She thought what would happen if they could properly live from their trade?

“I thought that as an industrial designer I could create new objects and work with artisans for them to paint them, so I decided to start in Olinalá, Guerrero. It is difficult to reach some communities, and being a woman alone would be even dangerous, so my mother decided to come with me and we both started this amazing journey. There we met Mr. Coronel, an artisan that had emigrated to the U.S. but returned to his hometown. This experience opened his mind, and he talked to me about how he was concerned about the extreme use of the linaloe wood and the lack of reforestation of it. He gave me his confidence, something that is hard to gain in these types of communities, and I am very thankful of that. And so, Aurora Legorreta started.”

Overall impact

This company impacts several sustainable development goals. The first and most important is number 10: “Reduce inequality within and among countries.” Mexico is one of the countries with more economic inequality, and most of this is because of the difference of available and reachable opportunities among Mexicans. On the other hand, it also impacts goal 8: “Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all.” Mexicans are hardworking people who are not afraid to get the job done given the right opportunities. Aurora Legorreta wants to give these opportunities for them to highlight the culture of Mexico with their great works. Due to disadvantages outside their reach, they fail with the commercial part and that’s where Aurora Legorreta seeks to promote them to grow, so they can continue to do what they are good at, but with more order and better planning. With this, they have a greater scope than they would by only selling their products locally. By consequence of the impact of these two objectives, we help to improve their living conditions impacting our third goal, number 1: “End of poverty in all its forms everywhere." Poverty is one of the great problems that the country presents, the difference in terms of economic power is enormous among some people who have a lot of money and a lot of people that have nothing at all. This project takes the best parts of Mexico: people with business skills and ideas, and others with a lot of culture, hardworking and hoping to improve their lives. It is a win-win relationship and at the end, Mexico wins.

Business benefit

Thanks to Aurora’s special view on aesthetics and quality in products, she selects the best products that stand out from the rest, making this her unique value proposition. They are not commonly found, or if it is a traditional product, they distinguish themselves thanks to the elegant and careful technique of the artisan. “Thanks to this, we have often received comments from the museums we collaborate with that we are one of the few suppliers that always have monthly sales.”

In the beginning, the enterprise was more balanced to the philanthropic side because not all costs of operations were considered, but throughout the years it has been corrected so the enterprise has become economically sustainable. This year Aurora opened their online store in www.auroralegorreta.com, thanks to the constant economic benefits generated in the past year.

Social and environmental benefit

“Guerrero has been one of the states that had been more affected due the drug war. This has resulted in a decrease of tourism, which is the main demand for the art crafts. Having created this link between the south of Mexico with northern museums has helped in some cases to reactivate the economy of families.”

Even if Aurora considers mostly the impact in Guerrero because is the most disadvantaged state, she works with artisans from five states (Guerrero, Estado de México, CDMX, Hidalgo and Aguascalientes) and seven towns or different techniques in total. At the end, all those families she works for have increased their income. Just in the last four years the artisans have sold $240,000 Mexican pesos to Aurora Legorreta, 21% CAGR.

Aurora Legorreta considers the preservation of the environment so they do not commercialize linaloe wood which is the traditional wood to make the art crafts of Olinalá, Guerrero, they use instead pine wood with linaloe’s scent and this is stated and explained to the customers to gain awareness for this issue.

Interview

Ingrid Legorreta, Owner