3 winning tips to scale your business
Nationwide recently partnered with the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (IHCC) to interview
a panel of talented and successful entrepreneurs. The goal was to learn the secrets of scaling
from a start-up to a profitable business. Three key themes emerged: family can help, connect to
community and seek resources.
Meet the panel
Laura Castillo
Co-Founder and Co-CEO
Felix’s Famous Cookies
Theresa Paucar
CEO/President
Supermercado Martin
Margaret Ceja
Founder and CEO
Ideal Fitness Designs
Seek Resources
Another recommendation by the panel is for
business owners to utilize additional resources
that are available. Within many communities the
Chamber of Commerce can be a great resource.
The panelists shared the importance of the
Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (IHCC)
to their success. The women all participated in
IHCC’s Coaching 4 Growth (C4G), a program
designed to give established small businesses
the tools to increase revenue and promote
profitability. C4G, reflecting IHCC’s broader work,
incorporates education on business fundamentals,
one-on-one advising and access to a larger network.
In 2018, Nationwide became a proud sponsor of
the C4G program.
Nationwide recently launched a Business Solutions
Center. It is a complementary website resource
available to all business owners with information
on complex business topics as well as insurance
and financial services products.
1 U.S. Small Business Administration
Products underwritten by Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and Affiliated Companies. Home Office:
Columbus, OH 43215. Subject to underwriting guidelines, review, and approval. Products and discounts not
available to all persons in all states.
Nationwide and the Nationwide N and Eagle are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.
© 2018 Nationwide CMO-0784AO.1 (07/18)
Family Can Help
20% of new businesses fail within the first year.1 We
asked the panel to provide a background on how
they started and what helped them to succeed.
The panel provided a common response. Family is
important and can play a role in success.
Laura Castillo co-founded Felix’s Famous Cookies
with her son, Felix. Laura shared that “everyone in
the family plays a role. It’s a family business and
everyone understands the importance of making
our business a success.”
Theresa Paucar, CEO of Supermercado Martin,
also has family involved in the business and its
success. She shared that “I believe that when
a family is together and works together and
supports each other, things run better and you
find more success in life.”
Margaret Ceja was encouraged by her daughter
to launch her business, Ideal Fitness Designs.
Her sister Donna is leading the expansion of the
service side of the business. Margaret shared that
“my friends and family support me when I would
sometimes have one of those days where you
have second thoughts about opening a business.”
Connect to Community
The panelists discussed the importance of having
a connection to the community or having a
social purpose.
Theresa’s grocery business donates food to
community members in need. She shared that
giving is important and “at the end everything
comes back to you.”
Felix’s Famous Cookies specializes in Mexican
cookies called polvorones based on a recipe from
Laura’s mom, Grandma Toni. A portion of every
cookie sold is donated to a different cause or
charity every month in memory of Grandma Toni.
Laura shared that the social connection “is instilled
in my family and in my culture.” And she advises
businesses with a cause that “you have to be true
and genuine about it.”
You can visit the Business
Solutions Center website at
nationwide.com/bizsolutions
/bizsolutions