Bienvenidos a The Ethnic Podcast, donde discutimos tecnologías y startups, y les invito a algunas
de las personas más inteligentes en Barcelona para compartir sus opiniones.
El tema de hoy es el estado de las cuatro mujeres en España, y de dónde vamos de aquí, porque es marzo y
nos sentimos que estaba en este lugar, que hacemos este podcast todos los meses y nos sentimos naturales
para invitar a algunas de las mujeres más inteligentes en Barcelona y preguntar y hablar con ustedes.
¿Cómo es ser un founder aquí?
Entonces, alrededor de la mesa, empezamos con vosotros, Nina Alostre, eres el co-founder y CEO de Elp.
También tenemos Helena Torres, co-founder de BeWoom, angel investor aquí en Barcelona,
y también el director del board de fundos de fundas.
Y, al menos, Nina Alostre, eres el co-founder de GNAP, que used to be the CEO of GNAP.
¿Talos?
No, nada.
He creado como el título de mi co-founder para ser CEO, así que puedo focar más en la estrategia, en la vida long-term,
y no estar en el día a día de GNAP.
Y, bueno, estar aquí y no estar siempre pensando en lo que está pasando ahora en la oficina.
Es un buen sentido.
Es como si veas tu hija creciendo y necesitas ser la hija, no tu hija, así que es genial.
¡Vas a ser la hija!
Sí.
Ok, bueno, eso parece bueno.
Entonces, para comenzar, ser un entrepreneur en Barcelona y también ser una mujer,
¿cómo es eso?
Estoy tan curioso.
Helena, has estado en el ecosistema durante 10 años.
¿Qué es tu impresión de ser yourself?
Ok, ser myself, eso es bueno.
Así que gracias primero por invitarme.
Bien.
Así que ser un entrepreneur, para mí es lo mismo como ser una mujer.
Soy una persona y soy un entrepreneur.
Pero es cierto que durante 10 años se ha cambiado mucho.
Y antes de que te dijiste que eres un entrepreneur en el principio,
yo me acuerdo en 2009, me dijeron, ok, ¿qué es eso?
Estás haciendo estas cosas que solo hay pocos que hacen, que no entendemos,
pero después de esos casos de su suceso, que han sido mucho excesos,
ser un entrepreneur o ser un investidor de un entrepreneur,
es algo que ahora es como una fachión.
Y tienes que estar ahí, si no estás ahí.
Pero también ser una mujer, no es diferente de ser un entrepreneur,
pero es cierto que cuando empecé, no hubo tantos.
Así que era un adentro.
Era un adentro.
Si, todos me recuerdan.
Así que fue fácil, si tú fuiste a un evento,
y hay que ser un investidor, todos los hombres.
Ahora hay más mujeres, pero antes eran todos los hombres.
Y los entrepreneurs eran todos los hombres.
Y yo dije, no, tengo un proyecto, soy una mujer.
Ellos me recuerdan, la mujer que estaba en el clave.
Sí, entonces tenían algo, era diferente.
Eso fue suficiente, para que me recuerdan,
para que podamos seguir, y tuvimos una conexión diferente.
Así que era un adentro.
No creo que ser una mujer es un adentro, en realidad.
No, no, no, por supuesto.
Y Nina, para ti también.
Estás aquí y también en los estados.
Estás en el juego durante mucho tiempo también.
Para ti.
¿Cómo es ser una entreprenuera en Barcelona hoy?
Me gustaría decir que pensé que, por ejemplo,
en los estados va a ser bastante diferente.
Yo creo que ser una entreprenuera y una mujer es súper difícil,
es súper difícil, súper difícil.
Tal vez, porque tengo dos niños.
Si yo estaba solo, sería diferente.
Pero me recuerda, cuando llegué en San Francisco
para abrir la compañía ahí, y en dos semanas
fui a una reunión con todos los teléfonos.
No era una reunión de GCMA,
todos los teléfonos y los bosses de todo.
Y tenía una conversación con uno de ellos
antes de la noche.
Y hablábamos...
Mi última compañía era una televisión móvil,
que era muy nueva en ese momento.
Y tenía una conversación y, a algún punto,
el hombre dice a mí,
¿Qué haces en la compañía?
Y luego, le dije a él, soy el CEO.
Y luego, le dijo a mí, ¿estás el CEO?
Entonces, lo que entendí es que debería ser
el director de marketing.
En ese momento.
Y es algo que siempre pasa.
Otra pregunta es, por ejemplo,
en...
Tú used to go for beers with investors
cuando eres una entreprenuera
más en la balea.
Porque te empiezas muy cerca
con las relaciones con algunos investors.
En el primer lugar, te go for beers
con nuestros entreprenueros.
En el segundo lugar, es difícil,
porque todos los investors tienen girlfriends.
Y es muy diferente.
En el primer lugar, te realizinges que
algunos de tus amigos go for beers con ellos
y no go for beers.
Yo soy una mujer, pero no soy sola.
Yo ya lo tengo.
Pero esto es algo que siempre pasa.
Independiente del país que estás viviendo.
Y la única cosa que podemos hacer
es apoyar a otras mujeres
desde mi punto de vista.
Es muy difícil.
Probablemente porque
mujeres take a lot of social responsibility
with kids, with mums,
with elderly, whatever.
And you need to empower them
from my point of view.
Gina, you raised a company here
in Barcelona.
Compared to Nina's experience,
can you recognize some of the same patterns?
Well, compared to Nina's
and Elena's experience,
I don't have the same amount of experience.
I've been an interpreter for four years.
I used to be a journalist,
previously a tech journalist.
Well, for me it was,
I won't say easy,
because it's never easy,
but because there was a group of women
and a lot of entrepreneurs in Barcelona,
it was kind of easy for me to get in,
to know them,
because everyone is empowering each other.
For example, I didn't know Nina,
but I know Elena,
and even though we don't work together,
I'm sure we can do a lot of things together
in the same environment.
Maybe because the environment is more mature,
we can increase,
you know, the empowerment
and to help each other.
Right.
I mean, when you started out,
was it as easy as it is today?
It's pretty new.
I'm a noob.
It's been only four years
since I founded the company.
It's going to be five years this year,
but I don't have the same amount of experience as them.
Right.
I mean,
going forward,
I mean,
a big issue these days
is getting women
into more manager positions in startups.
I mean, as you talk about,
you weren't expected to be the CEO
or only the marketing person.
And
I've been reading and studying
before talking to you guys,
and I've been thinking, I mean,
startups itself,
a great way
for women to early on
get these kind of positions, right?
Where, you know, in a big corporation,
it would be harder to rise to the top.
Is that right?
Or what do you think, Nina?
I think the startup ecosystem
is a great environment for women.
Yeah.
And also because women are really talented.
I mean, they are complete people
from my point of view.
They can manage many different tasks
and a startup
needs
this behavior.
Yeah.
Corporates are different.
So, different wages,
different responsibilities.
You don't know why there's no board member in...
Yeah.
Right. I mean,
for you, Elena, I mean,
is this something that you also, I mean,
you're meeting probably with female founders,
of all kind of diversity.
Do you think also that,
I mean, for women with ambition,
I mean, is startup ecosystem
a great place to start?
Of course, I think.
Also, there is a study of first round capital
that they did after 13 years
of investments, that they say
all the companies they had diversity on,
they get a 63%
more return on investment
than the ones that had only male investment,
male management team, male founders.
So, I don't think
it's about male-female, it's about the diversity.
Right.
Because you bring different points of view
and that's what makes you richer.
So, it's not about having only women
or having only men, but having both of them
and both views
will make you increase.
So, startups, as Nina said,
women, we are
more multitasking.
Yeah.
And when you start a startup, you don't have more days,
you have to multitask.
Or yes, you have to do everything.
So, that's an advantage for us.
But I don't think,
I really think it's a good ecosystem
for women, I think it's an advantage
to be a woman. I have two kids too
and I had it in the middle of everything.
But
the thing is
if you are a woman,
you have to show ambition.
I think the problem is not being a woman,
but to have the ambition
to start a startup ecosystem
once about an entrepreneur.
Being a man or being a woman.
If you are there, you show ambition,
you have the vision,
people want women.
I mean, when you are investing in startups yourself,
are you looking to the diversity
when you are looking to invest in someone?
I look to the person.
I would prefer to have more women
projects. It's true that there are not so many.
And there should be more
people going, yes, I can.
But at the end
I look to the person
and how he is and how passionate
is about the project.
But it's true when you
really find a woman that it's passionate
ambitious. I mean, that's a project
you have to invest in.
Because she's going to give all the soul.
I'm not saying that men are not going to give it.
But if the woman
makes this step,
she's going to give everything there.
I guess she's talking about you.
I mean,
you have a diverse founder
group at GNAP.
How has that been for you?
To work alongside.
Do you think that you have some strengths
that started
that only women or only men
doesn't have?
Well, our founding group
is very diverse. We have Chawma Farre
that he's a serial entrepreneur.
He has founded a lot of companies.
He has a lot of exits and he's very successful.
We also have
Javier Casares that he's a tech guy,
a super freak that everyone in the
freak area knows.
And there's also me that
I used to be a journalist, but when we started
Chawma was more into the
executive
finance side of the company.
Javier was in the tech side and I was
doing
everything in between.
You have to multitask.
And I'm sure
they saw something in me
because they didn't say
ok, the girl, she can
serve coffee and do
photocopies and things like this.
No, they say ok, let's work together
and the three of us are starting working together
and we raise a kid
that now is kind of fake.
Exactly, exactly.
I mean, when you're hearing this, I guess it's exactly
what you're saying. Yes.
That's a woman entrepreneur
every bestie is looking for.
So basically all founders
should look to some of these
multitasker women under teams.
I mean, for you
you're a sole founder?
No, no. I founded a company
with a business angel.
It's called Carlos Blanco.
He's not in the daily
Ok, ok.
So how does that work, that relationship?
It works.
We meet
several days
and discuss main matters
but he's not in the
in the funding, so in the
idea, in the...
Yeah, I understand.
I mean,
going forward, I mean, you're not only
entrepreneurs, I think we've established that.
I mean, you're much more
than that and you're also role models
for people that are
coming up now.
I mean, you're not in your head
That's true.
So, I mean, do you take that
responsibility seriously, Helena?
Do you think about it at all?
I said no.
I don't think...
I mean, if you say that, you're putting so much
responsibility over us
that I don't know if we want really to take it.
We already have a company, ok?
We're just startup.
That's too much pressure to put more on us.
But I think
it's not about being role model
but about talking
between each other and talking about
with other women that want to do it
and saying, ok, I'm here.
I haven't sold the company yet.
I hope to have it, to sell it
some day, but at the end
I'm doing my dream.
And why don't you follow your dream?
So, it's not about role model
but about sharing experience
about empowering, about giving visibility
to other women, about
making more visible
a community that, yes, let's go
and see what happens.
Some will be successful, some
know, but they will learn on the middle
and maybe in the next one.
So, it's not...
I would not put the pressure on the role modelling
but about sharing
and about growing together.
Exactly.
I mean,
that's very good points.
But if tomorrow,
if tomorrow there should be
what can I say,
concrete things, concrete move
to empower
more women in Spain
to be entrepreneurs.
I mean, what should that be?
I mean, and this is a big question.
I don't know.
I don't know.
I think that we have to work together
and work in our project
and things will come.
I mean, there's no a path, I think.
There's not a move.
We have to do this, this, this
and we want to achieve that.
No, it's a lot of things that
a lot of people has to do
together or separately
that would lead us to
to become a
better tech hub.
It's hard work.
Yes, it's hard work, but everyone in their project
you know with El,
Elena with B1, me with Jinab,
everyone with their project
and with our own little success
daily success, sometimes it's a daily success
like, hey, I didn't die today.
Keep up the good work.
Right, right.
That are going to lead us to something
a better future.
Ah, that's cool.
I'm curious and we gotta dive
into this a bit,
but always when you read
and I do research before
I talk to smart people like you
and they're coming in here
without any research
I mean, what comes to me again
and again is that
women aren't taken as serious
as men
in some organizations
and I mean, Nina is telling how
your experience in the US
It was just the first impression.
Just the first impression.
Right.
I don't know, this isn't an established fact
or anything, but I'm just curious
I mean,
what is your opinion
on this in Spain?
Have you, Helena, ever as a founder
I mean, has your opinions
ever been
worth less to some?
On the contrary, I have
a very positive view on everything.
I've been, since I'm in the entrepreneurial world
I think we should separate
corporate world and entrepreneurial world
It's different how it works
but for me, I've been taken seriously
not because being a woman
not being a man
because me, that was my opinion
and it was taken seriously
because it made sense
maybe it has not made sense
I would not have been taken seriously
as anyone
so
I don't think
that being a woman
it's a problem
it's true that
the attitude also you show since the beginning
So a lot of attitude
Yeah, I think that
as I said before
as a woman we have to be able
to do the first step
and to let's go for it
all three of us, we have done that
but there are a lot of women that are think
should I do or not
but once you do it, you are treated with a lot of respect
because you are there
you are following your dream
and you are fighting to
grow a company that started from zero
and you are putting everything
you are multitasking
so that's the respect you get
as any male
or any woman
because when you talk, you know what you are talking
when you are saying and people listen to you
not because you are a woman or a man
because you make sense
correct
there's one thing that Elena said
the most important part is taking the risk
that is the most important part
we have to empower people
take the risk
and fill the fear and do it anyway
it's a leap of faith
you have to jump
you don't know if there is water
but you have to jump
and this is maybe the biggest issue then
I mean
not enough are taking this risk
so how can we change that
I mean
that's a huge question
but why did you take the risk personally
I did it because I believed
in the idea of
the company
there was a problem in the market
and we tried to
find a solution to solve it
and we went for it
that's why I took the risk
because I believed not in myself
but in the idea and I thought
ok maybe I can
add some value to the project
and I can help increase
to be a company
a PowerPoint
but then
I don't know what we have to do
I don't know
maybe it's about seeing
your parents do it differently
maybe at school
I don't know maybe media
I mean Nina why did you take the risk
why did you jump
I must say that I
thought many times
I was going to start the company
and at that moment I always thought
I'm not ready yet
and this is something that happened to me
because I'm a woman I'm sure
I'm sure
now I see myself as a person
first
but I thought about the company many times
before I started
and this is a characteristic
that you go over things more
deliberately maybe than men do
I mean you think about more things
I mean that thing can go wrong
no
no
men, this is about society
so men
are thought to be
free
so I feel free, but I feel free now
or since 10 years ago
but they feel free since
the very beginning
and the world is for them
so they get ready for whatever
and the women are different
so
women are
thought more in relation to others
and the importance
in relation to others
in relation to a partner in a couple
in relation to a family
and it's about breaking
these models
but we're helping
we're helping just by doing it
and I see that with my friends
and I really
enjoy giving advice
because I know what they are expecting
so when a friend that is not
a startup ecosystem
asks you something
in my case
they are asking you a different point of view
and I really enjoy that
because I feel super free
always and I say always what I think
and this is very interesting
and they look for you
this happening to me
in the office, what would you do
why are you handling that
why don't you go and talk to whatever
and I just say
I feel
I would like to receive
I mean
that's very interesting
I mean that's brilliant
but
moving a bit forward with this
we were all
before March there was all this
Uber incident
Susan Fowler being very open
about these things
there's been a huge aftermath
and
a lot of technology news
here from Spain
you very rarely hear about these kind of news here
but is it because it doesn't exist
or is it because
people doesn't speak about it
or is it because we solved it
what do you think Gina?
I think that we take everything that is normal
something like this, it's normal
in our society
tech environment is not
more how do you say it in english
machista
macho
macho
I think that
this happens
in all the layers of the society
not only in a company
but also in a bar, in a football field
in a playground
this happening everywhere so
we need to
to point
I think it's not about pointing out what's bad
but pointing out what's good
and to normalize something like
our own companies
and we are empowered and we can do whatever we want
because
this is who we are, we don't have to live in fear
of relationship
we don't have to live in fear like
could I be possible
to do so
you have to empower yourself
and say hey, I'm a woman
and I'm a person
I'm a human being and I can do whatever I want
because this is my life
and this is my body
and this is my family, my friends
so go for it
oh, that's a good speech
let's go
see you all sitting there
she inspires me
oh, that's great
I agree
of course we should focus on the positive things
and the power
and factors
and there are some things going on in Barcelona
there are some forums for women in tech
women in mobile
are you involved
in any of this
both
both women in tech
women in mobile
for example
we are trying to group ourselves
in an environment that we feel comfortable
because that's what it's all about
creating an environment where you can
I don't think it's only being comfortable
but being visible
so I think that's the point
of all the initiative about women
en tech
with all the different names
but at the end it's making it visible
seeing there are a lot more than you think
and
let's make it visible
for the corporates, for the startups
and for the new women that will join
so they can go on
there is a community
you can be visible by yourself
but it's better if you go with a group
yeah, go together
and do we have enough
of these kind of groups
these kind of forums
I think there are too many
in the sense that
there is so much spread
that they are not visible enough
because they are small
so what we have to do
and there is already one initiative working on that
to do the umbrella and group all together
so it's stronger because you all go together
all with each specialization
you know
mobile, gaming
whatever
each with their own identity
but being women en tech
as a whole group
I think that's the point
if you are together, you're bigger
if you are just spread, you're smaller
it's like individual to group
so let's make a bigger group
and there's already one initiative going on that
ok, so things are happening
ok, we'll hear news soon
cannot disclose more but yes
it's secret, ok, very interesting
I think in any case that we need
decision makers
if we don't have people
able to take decisions in business matters
so women
mobile or en tech are great
we love them, beautiful
but we need people making business
and this is very important
so we need people in the high high
whatever company is going to buy technology
in whatever
and the more we have people on top positions
the more we will
I mean
as a shift this year we've been seeing
more and more corporate activity
corporate are moving
in the community
both are talking, investing
partnering with startups
is it a problem that
these corporations are
often
filled with men on board
men in CEO positions
is this an issue, what do you think?
I don't know
I can answer better than me
what do you think Nina, you brought it up
what happens is that
men are very corporate
they do sport together
they go and play golf
it's very difficult
to find a man
or four men and a woman
in a golf cart together
or they go
whatever, they share the hobbies
and they can do business
at the moment
on our side we have to wait
for office hours to do the business
or they go
let's say rotary or they go
whatever
so the more
things are changing but
there's still a lot of this
business
way of doing
some good questions
you're an investor yourself and a lot
of more corporates are coming into the game now
what do you think
for diverse teams
to prosper
does it matter
that corporates are
as Nina is pointing to
a lot of men
does it matter at all
it matters sometimes
I think she made a point
and it's the fact of the networking
there are a lot of relationships
that are influenced
by knowing someone
you have to choose
between one company and another
you choose the one you think you will trust more
and it will be because you know
the people who is behind
so at the end if you know the men
and not the woman
probably choose that it's not because
you don't think the woman are talented enough
it's because you have
more knowledge about this person
so you trust it's a doer
and it's going to deliver it
you play tennis with him
I think it's not that
but you have done this trustful relationship
so networking
it's something what we have to change
is the rules of networking
so we can do networking with men
different ways
it's just changing the rules
should I disclose my secrets
no the thing is
there are a lot of events
so it's
you have to go there
a woman tend to go home
you have to go there
it's difficult schedule
just reschedule
you have to go there
you go to the events and then they go dinner
I go dinner too
no really I go dinner too
and it's true
it's true that sometimes
I'm the only woman on the table
and then your family has to understand
that you are there
for preparing dinner
or to at night
no, but you know the husband
can prepare the dinner too
but they have to understand
it's not about you
yourself, your life, your body
it's about your family
your friends also
because hey I have to go to
I don't know I have to go to the valley
to close an investment round
or I have to go to
they have to understand that you are not going to
be for the barbecue on a weekend
you have to be somewhere else
I'm not sure when you look for the partner
sometimes women don't
make the step further because
it's a partner who say
okay no, you have to
to the dinner or whatever
I think that we have to be
choosing your partner in life
that's really critical because at the end
you're a team
if you really feel you are a team
that's not an issue
that's in my case I have a team
and you know it's
to prioritize one thing or another
it's true that I'm really square too
and I have my own rules
I go to dinner only from this week
from week until the other
this is for family time
but I have to go a dinner
and I have to do these things
and you establish relationships
and you are not treated different
because you are there
but networking it's a
a huge point to take into account
because it's about trust
no I change to investor site
instead of entrepreneur site
if you invest in companies
on the early beginnings
you are trusting
you are investing in faith
you are saying yes
they will do it
so it's about relationships
that's why all investors say
the team is the most important thing
because it's this team
going to be able to do this idea
and to make it big
it's worth zero
it's how you execute that
so that's trust
how you trust knowing someone
how you know someone
the more time you know this person the better
so that's how
we have to change
and I think these events about
woman while all these things
what they are doing it's
hey woman go out this afternoon
to an event
at the beginning it will be only woman
at the end we have to try
that the events are completely 50-50
not only woman not only men
there are mix and that everyone goes
and feel comfortable there
so I think trust
it's really the key word
on the startup world
once you are having 3, 4, 5 million revenues
that's another history
then there are numbers
at the beginning you don't have these numbers
and you are looking for money
you are looking for investment
why are they going to invest in you
so that's why also
there are so many companies
they say that woman
founded companies are less invested
by men are less invested than
men founded companies
one thing
first you invest in someone you feel very empathic
I feel more empathic with her
maybe than with a man
so I will tend to invest more on her
because I know how
a woman works so that's the same format
so take into account
that there are more men investors
invest in more men entrepreneurs
so that's not
they are just discriminating
because that's human
so we need more women investors then
yeah so we need more women investors
the second thing is sometimes
the products
and it's not the case
in my case yes but it's not the case
from Gina and from Nina
Gina Nina
but
they don't understand the product
there is an history
in the US about birch box
you know the box that you deliver
that's a long time ago
and that they want to raise
for money and the investors
said to the secretary can you come
you would buy that? it's really
that a good idea so that's not
the way to take a decision about it
yes
so that's why now there are more
woman led funds
I'm trying to invest in woman led companies
or companies that are
woman oriented
because they can understand what's the product for
so that's the different mindset
it's not just about gender
of how we behave
but it's because we think different
we act different, we consume different
so we have to understand that
and once you understand that
there is a business behind
and if there is a business
there are more men jumping
words of wisdom
so we are running a bit out of time
I mean a great discussion
but before we end up
I really want to just
take the round because
it's all about promoting each other
here and I just want all of you
to mention one startup in Barcelona
that has a diverse team
that you really like
and you guys are going to do great things
I have to think
there are plenty
there are a lot
I mean you are allowed to say two
only two
I mean you are meeting people all the time
TMIQ and social car
social car TMIQ
Nina
for instance Moka platform
people from Inokuen
and they are co-founders
men and women
and they are the management
Very interesting
Last but not least
I don't know maybe
Woof B Energy
that is a company that is using
I was going to say
he is using gamification for health
and Elena knows it because of
B1 per startup
and they can do
I think there are a lot of things
that they can do together
maybe we have to learn
maybe this is next step
that we collaborate with each other
like hey I have a startup that is doing this
and you are doing that
maybe we can do things together
I was hoping you would say that
and that wasn't my third one
I said ok I will say
So thank you so much
everyone of you
Nina, Elena and Gina for coming
and thank you for listening to the podcast everyone
be sure to check out the videos
the blog post
everything related to the podcast
that we are going to do next week