Carlos Ortíz: The entrepreneuer riding the waves in El Salvador
Raised on El Salvador’s magnificent Pacific Coast, in the beautiful beach village of EL Zonte in La Libertad, Carlos Ortíz spent his childhood riding the region’s world-class waves. “I loved surfing,” he says. “It helped get me through so many things.”
When he was thirteen years old, Carlos’s father, an architect, was killed when the helicopter he was travelling in crashed, during El Salvador’s 12-year civil war. His mother, Maria Isabel, was left alone in charge of raising ten children.
“My mother worked hard to provide for all her children. She knew how good surfing was for me and that it was all I wanted to do, but she also pushed me to study hard at school,” Carlos says.
After finishing school, Carlos worked in accounting for his mother and studied business administration.
“I learned so much in terms of my business skills. But I was also learning by watching the way my mother worked,” says Carlos. “She is an entrepreneur, very capable of guiding her children and building her companies. Her example made me eager to develop my own business projects. She never seemed to stand still.”
Carlos was conscious, though, that the region where he lived was beset by huge challenges. The Pacific coastal area, like much of the country, was plagued by gang violence. High rates of unemployment and the fear of being recruited into gangs were leading many young people to seek better opportunities in the capital San Salvador, and the USA. El Zonte was being increasingly left with an aging population and a sense of economic stagnation.
“I wanted to find ways of combining my passion for the ocean with a desire to encourage entrepreneurship,” he says.
Carlos felt that if he could capture young people in employment which was exciting, meaningful and reliable, then it would be possible to start stemming the flow of young people leaving the area.
“It was with this deep commitment and love for the sea that we created Olas Permanentes El Zonte (‘Permanent Waves’) in December 2007,” he says.
“Surfing changed me,” he adds. “Ever since I was a child, I knew I would be a surfer all my life.”
The business started with six people and provided accommodation, a restaurant and a surfing school. Located in a prime area with some of the best waves on the coast, he says his key message was to let people know El Zonte was the perfect place to learn and enjoy the sport of surfing.
“Places along the coast like Punta Roca, Km59 and La Bocana have long, fast-breaking waves, very popular among experienced surfers,” he says. “El Zonte itself has gentle waves which are great for beginners.”
“My aim was to provide high-quality surfing lessons to everyone, regardless of their skill level,” Carlos explains. “Whether someone’s a beginner or an intermediate surfer, I wanted people to know we could help them improve their skills.”
Another development in El Zonte was also changing the face of El Salvador. In September 2021, President, Nayib Bukele announced that the decentralized digital currency Bitcoin was officially legal tender, making it the first country in the world to adopt it as legal tender.
Whilst supporters argued that bitcoin could help bring financial inclusion and boost the economy, critics warned that could lead to corruption and economic instability. Yet it soon began attracting surfers to its beaches. The surf village of El Zonte became a hub for Bitcoin enthusiasts, with the currency paying for everything from surfboards to hotel rooms. The growing number of surf shops, hostels and travellers were soon benefitting.
Carlos says that he is pleased with the fact that the country is not only an international surfing destination but that tourists also flock to its volcanoes and mountains. He is also aware that unregulated tourism can be a double-edged sword.
“We need to conserve the eco-system here, particularly protecting the coast by keeping it green,” he says.
One of the projects Olas Permanentes is involved in is an educational programme that involves local people in beach clean-ups and protecting the indigenous turtle population. Carlos and his team have been actively involved in a campaign to prevent the illegal selling of turtle eggs, protecting them in a turtle hatchery and overseeing the release of baby turtles back into the wild.
“Releasing the turtles is part of what we give back to the ocean for all the blessings it offers us,” he explains. “Involving children and young people with the little turtles raises awareness of protecting our oceans. Remember that according to statistics, out of everyone thousand turtles born, only one reaches adulthood. Where they spawn is the same beach where they will reproduce as adults.”
Since its formation, Carlos has developed a chain of surf- and beach-themed restaurants, hotels, and entertainment centres in El Zonte and in San Salvador.
During COVID-19, amidst travel restrictions worldwide, El Salvador, like many other global surfing hotspots, experienced dwindling numbers of surfers.
“These were very difficult times for us,” admits Carlos. “But we kept going. I was always aware of my mother’s motto, ‘Never give up.’”
In 2022, Olas Permanentes heard about the advisory services offered by Argidius’ partner, TechnoServe, and its programme Impulsa tu Empresa (ITE).
“We decided to jump on that wave,” smiles Carlos. “We’ve covered finances, marketing, planning, and now we’re working on an operations manual.”
Since joining TechnoServe’s programme, Olas Permanentes has secured $475,000 in financing and is working to open a third location. ITE has helped implement a brand guide for talking to potential customers to increase sales.
“The operations manual and all the advice from Impulsa tu Empresa will help me to make it more practical, easier, and simpler to open our third location,” says Carlos. “Technoserve is taking our company to another level.”
“ITE is essential for the development of SMEs in El Salvador,” Carlos adds. “I’m grateful to them for the way they have helped us develop our business model.”
Since drawing on business support from TechnoServe, Olas Permanentes has increased its sales by 56% and its staff size by 53%.
"Carlos is an entrepreneur with a lot of dynamism and clarity in what he wants to achieve with his brand,” says Jasmine Coreas, ITE Manager for Guatemala and El Salvador. “It has been a pleasure working with him on his financing access, the organization and systematization of his processes, and his brand strategy."
Surfing has become a path to employment for many young people on El Salvador’s Pacific Coast. Many credit surfing with keeping them out of gangs and helping them break the cycle of poverty.
“As the surfing industry continues to grow, it’s providing an economic lifeline for many in this country,” Carlos says. “I rejoice daily that I’ve been able to use my greatest passion in life as a way of making a living and giving back to my community.
“Carlos is an entrepreneur with a lot of dynamism and clarity in what he wants to achieve with his brand. It has been a pleasure working with him on his financing access, the organization and systematization of his processes, and his brand strategy."
