Stephanie, A Successful American Entrepreneur in Argentina
I met Stephanie in 2011 as we have many friends in common in Rosario. I invited Stephanie to share her story on my website because I wanted to show you that sometimes all it takes to set up your own business overseas is to be attentive to the needs of your local market. Stephanie came here without any specific professional plan but did a very smart move in noticing a gap in the market and decided to do something about it. She is now running 2 very successful businesses in Rosario!
Meet Stephanie, an American expat in Rosario
Tell us a little bit about you and what made you move to Argentina?
I was working as a bartender in San Francisco and studying Sociology at San Francisco State when I made the decision to backpack through Peru for 5 weeks with a girlfriend of mine. While we were on the Incan trail to Machu Picchu, I literally fell in love at first sight with a beautiful man that turned out to be from Argentina. To make a long story short, I didn’t return to the US but rather bought a one-way ticket to “see about a guy” and that guy asked me to marry him 3 months later. I have been here ever since.
What were your first impressions – was it much of a culture shock?
Hmm, it has been a long time, but I remember my first impressions to be positive ones. I was in love, everything looked beautiful around me. Haha. I did suffer quite a bit of culture shock, though. Coming from California, it was normal to say hello to people you passed on the street daily, or chat with the servers, I had to learn the hard way that chatting with my waiter, apparently, meant I was trying to pick him up.
The problem is that I really stuck out in the beginning, as my style was loud and I was fearless in every way. (If you have ever been to the Bay Area, you know exactly what I am talking about) This drew a lot of attention, and not always the positive kind.
Tell us 3 things you love about Argentina or Rosario?
I love love love mate*. I love it in every way; the way it is a ritual that brings family and friends together, the way it jump-starts me in the morning and keeps me going during the long days… (*Mate is a traditional South American infused drink, particularly in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and southern states of Brazil)
Secondly, I see a great deal of opportunity in Argentina, and especially in Rosario. It is a city that is thirsty for new and interesting ideas. People are hungry for change and open to so many possibilities. I love that.
And I guess thirdly, I love that the society is so active. On a sunny day, it seems like everyone, young and old, take to the public spaces. Everyone is skating, biking, kayaking, taking a stroll, and yes, drinking mate… I have never been anywhere in the world where the people have such a large sense of public space.
You are from the States. What do you miss about the US?
Haha, well, I miss several things, but nothing that is too important.
What I really miss is maple syrup. It is the one thing I can’t find here and have yet to figure out how to make a tasty substitute.
I miss ethnic food variety, but in their place, I have learned to cook almost all of the recipes I miss the most. So what I am trying to say is, I miss loads of things, but I have found nice replacements for most of them. Family, friends and maple syrup are the only things I can’t seem to replace.
You have opened your own language school – how did that come about?
Well, I arrived in Rosario before it was essentially on the map as far as tourism goes, so, Spanish schools were hard to come by.
I went on the hunt for schools where I could learn Spanish and make friends and came up empty-handed. I saw a niche there. If I was in need, I was sure others were too and at that time, the only investment that was necessary was the website.
Spanish in Rosario has taken on many forms since then. I initially started as a sort of “broker” but quickly learned that I was far too much of a perfectionist to leave the quality of teaching and materials in the hands of someone that wasn’t, so I hired a few teachers and began investigating innovative and creative ways of teaching languages. From there it sort of took off and continues to grow with each day.
Although your business is a traditional business that deals with students face to face, how important is it to be online? How much of your marketing activities are online?
I would say that 90% of all our students contact us via the internet, so internet marketing is ESSENTIAL! But I am not talking about Google ads. I mean, social media, chat, online communication, immediate response to emails and inquiries, etc. I live online these days.
What advice would you give to anyone willing to set up his or her own business overseas?
Hmm, this is a tough one. I think that, in Argentina, specifically, I would say:
“Listen,” not only to yourself but to the society. Listen to what do they need, what are they looking for, and then, get creative in finding ways to give them something new and don’t get frustrated if at first, you do not succeed. All good things take time.
If you want to check out Stephanie’s language programs in Rosario, Argentina –
Spanish in Rosario – SpanishInRosario.com
English in Rosario – EnglishinRosario.com
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Thank you very much, Stephanie for this great interview and I am sure that a lot of readers will identify themselves with your story.
Want to read more Global Entrepreneur Success Stories? Make sure to check out my other Interviews here.
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I am part of the Wanklyn family who lived in Buenos Aires in the late 19th century. It was interesting to see your name as an American now living in Buenos Aires. I visited Quinta Wanklyn last year which is now a primary school. My great grandfather went from Lancashire to Buenos Aires and set up a bank there. On the other side of the family, they set up the Presbyterian church in Buenos Aires. I did not know whether you were of the Wanklyn family in Argentina.
Hi Stephanie! Next year I will be moving to Argentina & I wanna teach the kids English & learn Spanish at the same time. My fiancee lives there & our daughter will be going school there but then at the same time I wanna do an animal shelter for all the animals of cats, dogs & other animals that need help finding a home. So I what do & what be the best option. Me & fiancee are panning on getting married but the airlines told me that I have a round trip ticket. I’m learning some Spanish right now. So how can make job requirement better.
We will be moving to Rosario in the next few months and I am having a hard time finding the best schooling option for my daughter who will be nine. Hoping you could possibly help:)???
Her nor I know the language at this time so I want to find the easiest way to transition her while embracing the culture and not using the American expensive schools… would you have any suggestions where to begin??
Thank you
Angel Lilley
Hi Angela, Thanks for stopping by and reading Stephanie’s interview. I would recommend getting in touch with her via her website http://www.spanishinrosario.com as she will be able to tell which courses you and your daughter would need to get you up to speed with Spanish.
Here in Rosario, there are many schools so you would need to get in touch with them to see if you can register at their schools mid-year. (Keep in mind that school year runs from March til November in Argentina).
There are no American schools per-say here but a couple of schools teaching in Spanish and English – Colegio San Bartolome and Colegio San Patricio come to mind. It could be an option for your daughter as she will not be completely lost but will improve her command of Spanish as students within the school as mostly Argentinean and communicate together in Spanish.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Best of luck!
Sabine
Hey Angela, My name is Jen and I’m a Casting Producer for an international travel TV show based in NYC. We feature expats who have recently moved abroad and tell their stories. We are always looking for interesting people to feature on our show and during my search, I came this blog, and your comment! If this sounds like something you would be interested in, please shoot me an email at jenleahy@leopardusa.com. Thanks!
From the Bay Area also. I am addressing your need for maple syrup. When I was a kid in the seventies it was so expensive people learned to substitute. I had this for months before I found out it was not the real thing, that it was a substitute. And I think most brands you bought in America are made this way anyway, just take dark brown sugar with a little water, just enough so that it is slightly runnier than real syrup, and add drops of maple extract to taste, then keep it on a high simmer till the thickness is right for you. Don’t boil it too hot because you will caramelize the sugar, but I think you will find that you don’t know the difference at all.
Thanks Markus for the recipe!!! I’ll pass it on to Stephanie. This is one of the things I learnt from my years abroad, to cook my own substitute for things that I cannot find in the the country I live such as Thai Chili Sauce, baked beans and now I am even making my own bread.
Have property in San Rafael. Want to retire there. Can you provide info?
Hi Pat, of course, I’d be happy to help you. let me know what kind of information you are looking for.
San Rafael is a beautiful region!
Great interview! I too am from the Bay Area and have just moved to France for a wonderful man that I met in Paris, the culture shock is comparable and I’m learning the hard way that you can’t just talk to everyone!