We recently connected with Julio Martinez-Clark and have shared our conversation below.

Julio, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

My brother Pedro is a Harvard-trained interventional cardiologist. Pedro was advising several medical device startup with the clinical development of their innovations. That included, helping them with their clinical trials. Pedro was working with investigators in Latin America. I was helping Pedro to set up these clinical trials. We noticed that all the medical device companies Pedro was working with struggled when trying to get their clinical trials off-the ground in Latin America. There was no clinical research organization (CRO) in the US that could advise medical device startups on how to select investigators and operationalize their clinical trials in Latin America. So, Pedro and I decided to create bioaccess™ to fix it.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I was in Colombia when I sat down with my brother Pedro. He told me about his work helping US medical device startups run clinical trials. He suggested I help him with regulatory and logistical matters with a clinical trial in Colombia. I said, “yes.” That was in August 2010. Since then, I’ve been leading bioaccess™, and I’ve grown the company from just one employee (myself) to over 40 employees. The problem that we solved is that medical device startup companies struggled when they need to run their clinical trials in Latin America. Back in 2010, they didn’t have professional help when trying to find investigators and operationalize their clinical trials in Latin America. That’s why bioaccess™ exists. What sets us apart is that we are the only CRO in Latin America specialized in medical device clinical trials. We are proud of the company we have built. bioaccess™ is a one of its kind CRO in Latin America. The other CROs work in pharmaceutical drugs and vaccines. We work in medical devices.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

Zero-to-One by Peter Thiel has been one of the most influential books for my career. Peter Thiel is an iconic figure in Silicon Valley, known for being part of the “PayPal Mafia,” the first external investor in Facebook, and the co-founder of disruptive companies like Palantir. His experience and success in the tech startup realm lend him undisputed authority on the subject. These are the main ideas of the book:

Focus on Radical Innovation:
Thiel argues that true progress and business success come not from competing in existing markets but from creating something entirely new, going “from zero to one.” This focus on radical innovation is essential for achieving exponential growth and building truly disruptive businesses.

The Importance of Positive Monopolies:
The book challenges the conventional notion that monopolies are negative, arguing instead that positive monopolies (those offering unique and innovative products or services) are beneficial for both businesses and society. These monopolies allow for investment in innovation and development, propelling society towards brighter and more sustainable futures.

Practical Strategies for Startups:
“Zero to One” offers practical strategies for startup founders and potential investors, including the importance of discovering unrecognized “secrets” in the business world, defining markets specifically to avoid direct competition, and the need to focus on vertical innovation (creating something new) rather than horizontal innovation (improving existing things).

Unique Perspective on the Future of Technology and Business:
Thiel provides a unique perspective on how startups can better predict the future and take steps to ensure their success. His vision encompasses creating successful companies and opening new frontiers for humanity, inviting entrepreneurs to dream boldly and create courageously.

Critique of the Educational System and Focus on Sales:
In addition to his ideas on innovation and entrepreneurship, Thiel criticizes the current educational system and highlights the critical importance of sales skills. He acknowledges that no one can reach great heights without the ability to sell or having a seller by their side.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

In my experience, the best way to build an audience on social media is by creating and distributing quality content. This makes you an authority in a field. Very few entrepreneurs are willing to take the time to research and write quality content. This applies extraordinarily well in sectors or niche markets that nobody has addressed before. This is what I did within the Medtech industry. I found out that there was no quality information on how Medtech companies can operationalize medical device clinical trials in Latin America. I created a series of blog articles and created a podcast to address this niche. Now, I’m considered an authority in the sector.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bioaccessla.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliomartinezclark/
• Other: https://www.juliomartinezclark.com/