RANDOLPH — A woman who immigrated from Guatemala is now living the American dream with her successful daycare in Randolph, Massachusetts.
“My business was one of the ‘Businesses of the Year’ last year as a family daycare in a home, and I’m very proud of that,” Dora Aguilar told WBZ-TV.
But it wasn’t always so rosy. Aguilar had her first child four years after arriving in Massachusetts in 1994 and immediately struggled to find child care. Amid those struggles, the former teacher had her moment of revelation.
“If I know exactly how to work with children, how to do this, why am I having difficulties myself and why am I putting my children in this situation?” she says.
Amplify LatinX Small Business Program
In 2001, Aguilar founded Bright Beginner’s Day Care. For years, the business survived but never really thrived. Eventually, she discovered the Amplify LatinX small business program.
Eneida Roman is the president and CEO of Amplify LatinX. She says people who enroll in the nonprofit’s program are passionate about their business, but aren’t always experts in running it.
“They see themselves as business owners”
“They’re so dedicated to their work that they don’t really think of themselves as business owners. So we help them think of themselves as business owners,” Roman told WBZ.
She says the free program helps small business owners identify and overcome their business blind spots.
“How to file their taxes properly, how to market properly, how to do accounting properly, how to forecast, so they can understand where the money is going,” Roman said.
Aguilar enrolled in the program and saw her profits increase so dramatically that she is considering expanding her business. She highly recommends the program to others.
“Don’t be afraid to go knock on doors or ask someone who knows what they can learn,” Aguilar told WBZ.
