麻豆传媒映画

Since co-founding Argentina-based Bitlogic a decade ago, Edgardo Hames has intended to enter the North American market. But he didn鈥檛 quite know how to do it.

Now, he has a pathway for his 120-employee EdTech company to grow beyond Latin America and into the U.S., thanks to 麻豆传媒映画鈥檚 SoftLanding program.

麻豆传媒映画 hosted Hames and three other Latin American entrepreneurs in late January for the launch of SoftLanding @ 麻豆传媒映画, an initiative developed by the at 麻豆传媒映画鈥檚 , in partnership with the Division of Research and Innovation and the 麻豆传媒映画 Mission Valley Innovation District.

SoftLanding provides a glide path for small and medium size enterprises to successfully touch down in the U.S. Its pilot cohort includes companies based in Brazil, Honduras, Guyana, and Argentina.

International founders spent a whirlwind week networking within San Diego鈥檚 global entrepreneurship ecosystem. They met with legal and finance experts, as well as officials from the city, the San Diego World Trade Center, the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.

They also participated in sessions with Fowler College of Business faculty members  regarding U.S. business culture, competitive advantage, effective hiring, and taxation. 

Finally, they pitched their companies to 麻豆传媒映画 graduate students in the Master of Science in Global Business Development program. Over the spring semester, student teams will develop an entry strategy, competitive market analysis, and go-to-market partnership recommendations for each company.

鈥淪tudents pick one of the four and work with them on a biweekly basis,鈥� said Martina Musteen, the Charles W. Hostler Professor of Global Business at Fowler and faculty director of the Wendy Gillespie Center. 鈥淭hey identify opportunities, assess them, and make a plan. Then they present it at the end of the semester.鈥�

Eventually, SoftLanding envisions offering short-term residency for select companies, with continued 麻豆传媒映画 business consultation and office space in the 麻豆传媒映画 Innovation District.

鈥淲e鈥檙e not sure how long the residency will be 鈥� two months, six months, 12 months 鈥� but we would love for them, in the future, to have office space provided in Mission Valley and student support while they are launching,鈥� said Heidi Knuff, managing director of the Wendy Gillespie Center.

The center will begin recruitment for participants for the 2027 SoftLanding program this spring, with Immersion Week scheduled for Jan. 24-30. .  

Special opportunity

Three of this year鈥檚 four entrepreneurs had previously spent time in San Diego as part of the U.S. State Department鈥檚 . For Hames, SoftLanding is 鈥渁 great opportunity to understand what needs to be done to establish operations in the U.S.鈥�

His company builds custom software for universities and other institutions in Argentina, Chile and Mexico, among others. It also provides an artificial intelligence chatbot that allows students to ask questions about the courses they鈥檙e taking..

鈥淲e want to diversify and move into a new market in the U.S.,鈥� said Hames, 鈥渁nd we think having some success stories here will help us build credibility in the Latin American market.鈥�

Dason Anthony, founder of 592Tees, has built his embroidery and screen-printing business into a leading supplier of promotional merchandise in Guyana. To grow, however, he needs access to a larger population and more potential customers.

He came to San Diego 鈥渢o better understand the culture and the way you do business. It is not the same back in my home country, so those norms will be new when I move. I am very eager to set up a base here.鈥�

Thiago da Silva Lopes is the founder of American Insights, a network of 17 English-immersion franchises across Brazil. The company also launched an English language-learning app that employs gamification and AI to improve outcomes.

鈥淲e are committed to quality because that is our main differentiation,鈥� said Lopes. 鈥淚 basically want to understand the roadmap to establish operations here at the lowest risk possible.鈥�

Darwin Buezo, founder of World Connect Academy in Honduras, offers remote worker training on digital tools used by global companies. World Connect specializes in training legal assistants, data entry, and digital marketing personnel.

In San Diego, Buezo aims to expand beyond training workers. He will explore a staffing augmentation model in which World Connect provides remote workers to U.S. companies for specific projects or to fill skill gaps.

鈥淚 see myself living here and investing here,鈥� he said.

To learn more about SoftLanding @ 麻豆传媒映画 and Immersion Week 2027, .