Rising ICON #48: Juan Llerena
What name do you prefer to be called?
Juan
What are your pronouns?
He/him
Where did you grow up?
I am from a small town south of Lima Perú, called Barranco. I grew up living less than 10 minutes from the beach, so the sand and the sea are my natural elements.
What city are you currently based in?
I have lived in Waconia for the last 9 years. I have called Minnesota home for the last 24 years.
How do you typically introduce yourself to new people?
For anything work and business-related, I introduce myself as Juan LLerena, Founder and President of JLLB Media Marketing Agency & Design Studio.
What’s one thing you wish more people knew about you?
I am a serial entrepreneur, a self-learner, an avid runner, a tennis lover, and a former soccer enthusiast. I want to grow into a public speaking space...and I am also a book author.
Who do you help?
With JLLB Media we help Entrepreneurs, small business owners, nonprofit organizations, and socially responsible for-profit organizations.
What are you building now?
I am growing and scaling JLLB Media (https://jllbmedia.com)
At the same time, I am building Vamos Entrepreneur, an initiative to provide support for Spanish-speaking entrepreneurs to advance their business goals through entrepreneurship. (https://vamosentrepreneur.com)
What were you building ten years ago today?
About 10 years ago, we were building Vamos! Scholarship, a nonprofit organization that provides scholarships to Latinx students going into college. This is a volunteering project and it is a contribution toward closing the educational gap for Latinos (https://vamosmn.jllbmedia.com)
What do you predict of yourself 10 years from now?
I do not exactly know. I guess I will be hustling, building something, improving something, and trying to make some kind of a positive difference through entrepreneurship.
What’s a fact or statistic you wish everyone knew about your industry?
Most new businesses fail in less than 3 years. Having a solid business plan and marketing strategy can help you increase the odds in your favor.
Why do you believe the work you do matters?
Creating effective messaging in a world where there is a lot of noise, is crucial to get noticed to attract your ideal target market.
Who is your mentor and what is the best advice they’ve given you?
I don't have one particular mentor, but I am constantly reading, and consuming content about self-improvement, entrepreneurship, marketing, sales, and technology.
One of the best pieces of advice I've been given is to learn how and when to ask for help and admit I do not know something.
What piece of content about you or your company are you most proud of?
I am proud to say that we give a personalized service to each and every client, large or small, with care, ethics, and love.
What publication do you hope to appear in next?
An entrepreneurship and/or business media.
Who would you love to be interviewed by?
Anyone with a genuine interest in the things I care about.
If you had to give a TEDTalk tomorrow, what would the title be?
Pursuing Excellence.
What award would mean the most to win?
Best father in the world.
What makes zero sense to you?
Expect a different result, without being willing to change anything.
What’s a word in your industry you hope gets re-evaluated?
I struggle with words such as under-privileged, under-represented, and people of color.
What game are you changing?
Through our work, we are helping small business owners and entrepreneurs improve their chances to let the world know about their solutions.
What’s the next thing you’re a part of that you want to invite more people to participate in?
I want more people to explore their creative and entrepreneurial side.
Where can we follow you online?
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juan-llerena-845ba357/
What’s one thing that makes every leader better?
Lead by example. Walk the talk.
_______
We’re grateful to each Rising ICON for their transformative work. Thank you, Brittany, for sharing your story!
LAUREL is a media relations partner for bold leadership. We build effective strategies for scale and growth specializing in digital executive presence and go-to-market strategy. To follow along with the Rising ICONS series, nominate a leader or subscribe to our weekly emails below. To accelerate your own rise, get our free guide to visibility Force to ICON: the TLDR.
“Creating effective messaging in a world where there is a lot of noise, is crucial to get noticed to attract your ideal target market.”
Notice: It’s important for our readers to understand the origin of the interview content. The featured ICON contributed responses that were not edited from the original submission. All claims are made solely by the contributor and do not reflect the views of LAUREL or its partners. Thank you for supporting rising leaders. The future is bold.
