Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Lucas Cunha, Co-Founder of Otrafy, Inc., located in Buffalo, NY, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Otrafy helps manufacturers in highly regulated industries (like food and beverage) to automate supplier communication, achieve compliance, measure sustainability, and identify risks by optimizing the collection and revision of certificates and quality documents. While doing that, our AI modules can extract data from certificates and automatically create databases of accredited materials.
Tell us about yourself
I am a technologist with years of experience working with digital transformation for manufacturers. I have a vision of a future where data will flow naturally with each supply-chain transaction, and business decisions will be made based on big data. Wanting to create a part of this future, I co-founded Otrafy, building the data infrastructure to enable the transaction of goods between different parties and jurisdictions.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Being able to create a technology business backed by some of the most renowned accelerators and investors in the USA as an immigrant who moved to the US with no family or friends. Having no support meant that adversities were always harder.
With time and perseverance, I was able to create a strong network of like-minded business people/friends who enabled and helped me navigate this journey. Creating this network while navigating my business is what I'm most excited about.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
All the pressures to ensure you are taking good care of your team. Financially, emotionally, opportunities, and coaching. Taking good care of our people is top of mind and also probably one of the most psychologically taxing things of running a business.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Make sure you are ready for an amazing and brutal rollercoaster of emotions.
- Be ready to navigate an extremely challenging market environment.
- Get the right people around you to make sure you are able to thrive.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.otrafy.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lucas.p.dacunha/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucaspereiradacunha/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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