We recently connected with Valerie C Brugal and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Valerie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Catalysta emerged as a solution to the many complexities and challenges that the art world can present to the young collector. The vision was to create a virtual space and destination to showcase the many talented Latin American artists to the rest of the world, while addressing the misconception that acquiring good art has to be complex.

We are a marketplace- contemporary art gallery featuring exclusively Latin American artists. To create a positive impact in the artists life we give them a 55% commission on each artwork sold through the platform.

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 consider myself a Latina, an art lover, a passionate traveler, a cultural consumer, and a citizen of the world. After many years of visiting art fairs and developing relationships with artists and galleries, I decided to commit to a career in collection management , with a purpose and a mission.

Catalysta aims to give voice to those Latin American artists of impeccable craft and discipline; those of this new generation of artists that understand and endorse the benefits of technology. The platform aims to be a catalyst in the art tech industry and a space where elements, themes, and materials from the region converge within a contemporary narrative.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

My business is bootstrapped, and I have no co-founders or investors at the moment. Some years ago I made a successful real estate investment and with part of that money, I opened a credit line for my business. Since then I’ve been building a lean product and testing different ways to market, not only online but also IRL.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

The lean startup by Eric Ries, on this book his methodology focuses on building and growing successful startups by employing principles of continuous innovation and validated learning. My top favorite concepts are “validated learning” and “pivot or persevere”. The goal of the first is to test hypotheses and assumptions about the business model and product in a scientific manner in order to validate what works and discard what doesn’t. The second is based on the data and feedback, what changes are we willing to make to our product, strategy, or even the entire business model. This can involve a fundamental change or persevering with the current approach.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.catalysta.la
• Instagram: catalysta.la
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/catalystala/?viewAsMember=true
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/jD90YwFMLrI?si=e58je3JOmwMBHE8a

Image Credits
For my personal image please credit photographer Juan David Cuartas Rueda