Gabriela Estrada, Vexi | Landing Your First Customers and Growing Profitably

The audio and video are in Spanish. These notes are a translation.

Growing exponentially, the Silicon Valley way, does not always lead to sustainable businesses. Today’s guest took the opposite path and focused on growing profitably from the start.

Gabriela Estrada is the CEO and cofounder of Vexi, a neobank focused on serving university students, young professionals, and microentrepreneurs who do not get access to credit from traditional banks.

To date, Vexi is used by about 1 million Mexicans, 80% of whom did not previously have a credit card, and it has raised more than 10 million dollars from investors such as Magma Partners, Redwood Ventures, and Alpha4 Ventures.

Gabriela told us how she decided which customer segment to focus on first and how she got her first customers. We also talked about the decisions and strategies that allowed Vexi to grow quickly in a profitable way. Finally, we talked about why Vexi struggled to raise capital at the beginning and how that has benefited it as a business.

Youtube Timestamps*

[3:10] - The Leap from Employee to Founder

How did Gabriela arrive at the fascinating world of startups?
At the start of her career, Gabriela challenged a Director at American Express, telling him that although she did not have the knowledge or the experience, she had the drive and the ability to learn very quickly. How has this experience influenced your hiring philosophy and who gets professional opportunities at Vexi?
Gabriela jumped into founding a company without knowing anything about fintech and leaving a very successful career at Citibanamex. What was the hardest part of that transition from employee to founder, and what recommendations would Gabriela give other people in a similar moment?

[13:36] - How to Get Your First Customers

Fintech is a very competitive space. What role does competition play in her strategy? What does Gabriela believe is the right mindset regarding the competitive landscape?
Since 2019, a wave of digital banks has emerged. What role did competition play in her strategy? Do you ignore it, do you take it into account, and what do you believe is the right mindset regarding the competitive landscape?
An investor once said “money has instant Product Market Fit”. This phrase reflects that fintechs often find it easy to grow quickly. How did they decide which customers to focus on first, and how did they get their first customers?
The sequence of expansion into new market segments is also key to a business’s success or failure. How have the customer segments Vexi wants to focus on been changing?

[33:44] - Growing Profitably

Cinthia Merlos, Gabriela’s partner, commented that they decided NOT to grow the Silicon Valley way, and that is why they preferred to focus on growing profitably. How does that show up in the way Gabriela thinks about the levers she has to accelerate growth or prioritize profitability?
How has Vexi been able to grow profitably against competitors that invest so much money in “subsidizing” demand?
What other decisions were key for Vexi to grow quickly and be efficient in its use of capital at the same time?
Recently, they raised a Series A, but it was hard for you to raise capital at the beginning.
Why do you think it was hard to raise capital in the early days? What do you think is the value of NOT being able to raise capital at the beginning?

[44:44] - Rapid-Fire Questions

If she had to start a company from scratch, what is the main piece of advice Gabriela would give herself?
What has been the most influential book on Gabriela’s path through the world of startups?
Changes Gabriela would like to see in Latin America’s startup ecosystem