Someone Somewhere's story shows how failure can be the beginning of great transformations and learning in times of crisis.
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This story was first seen in our Speakers Stories newsletter, where each month we share one of the best failure stories from our global community. Get these stories in your inbox before anyone else, subscribe to our newsletter here.
Fátima Álvarez, Co-founder of Someone Somewhere. A sustainable brand offering clothing, backpacks, and accessories. She leads the Social Impact department, working with her team to create market opportunities that boost demand, thereby increasing the impact on the artisan communities they collaborate with.
Fatima: For me, failure is inevitable when we try to tackle challenging tasks or solve complex problems. Every step we take comes with mistakes, but above all, with lessons that make us stronger.
Failure is an experience that has helped me to understand my capabilities, those of my team, and to understand what to avoid as we continue to build the business. I like to think that by embracing these failures, we can become more vulnerable while building confidence.
Fatima: Alongside my partners Antonio Nuño and Enrique Rodríguez, we started a project 13 years ago with a clear mission: to address extreme poverty in Mexico and worldwide.
After years of traveling to a community in the Sierra Norte of Puebla, Mexico, we recognized the potential of craftsmanship in that region and many others. So, we ventured out to create a business that connected this art with external demand.
Years later, we expanded the team and founded the brand Someone Somewhere, named to honor the fact that every product is signed by the artisan who created it and the place they call home. We aim to create fair, steady jobs while shining a light on the entire value chain.
Fatima: In 2020, after a lengthy fundraising process we were in the final stretch to launch in the U.S. market.We prepared to roll out our e-commerce platform and open some physical stores.
shipped inventory and hired a PR agency. It was one of our biggest bets to scale and grow as a business.
We knew it would be challenging to shift from a familiar market (Mexico) to one full of opportunities and obstacles (the U.S.).
But, of course, we had no idea a global pandemic was about to turn everything upside down.
As we began to grasp the chaos the pandemic would bring, reading the news and feeling unsure about our U.S. market entry strategy, we realized this was going to fail . Eventually, the global emergency forced us to shut down our retail channels overnight, and we couldn't launch our brand as planned.
Then, on the news that all non-essential businesses in Mexico must close indefinitely. My partners and I knew the dream we'd been building for over a decade—and the livelihood of more than 300 artisans—was at risk of collapsing.
Our worry wasn't just about the drop in sales; we also had to figure out how to keep production going to sustain income for our team and the communities we worked with.
Fatima: When we realized that we had to pause the launch, we felt overwhelmed by ambiguity. Every business area was collapsing, and we had no idea what the next months would bring or how we'd sell the inventory we had bet everything on.
It was tough to think about potential job losses across communities, factories, and our office. I struggled with the uncertainty of how long this would last and its impact.
We were building a company that promised fair, steady work opportunities for people who needed them. And just as we were starting to deliver on that promise, everything ended indefinitely.
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At Fuckup Nights events for companies, we share inspiring stories like Fátima's. Stories of teams that have overcome incredible challenges.
These narratives offer valuable tools for navigating failure and motivate and inspire entire teams to unleash their potential, even in tough times.
Transform your workspaces and let learning flow through mistakes. Learn how to bring a custom Fuckup Nights event to your company here.
Now, back to Fatima...
Fatima: We recognized an opportunity in B2B sales, leveraged our internal resources, and learned to channel our talent and passion into new directions. While we still maintain both retail and B2B channels, we discovered that partnerships with other companies allow us to plan better and create a more consistent and structured impact.
After several intense ideation sessions and collaboration across departments, we managed to move the inventory we had in the U.S. by offering products tailored to the purpose and identity of various companies.
Spoiler alert: That's when we discovered the massive potential of the B2B channel, which ultimately shaped our strategy for the following years.
The transition flowed after the chaos. As entrepreneurs, we realized we were somewhat used to crises, sudden challenges, and shifting plans, which helped us adapt and iterate quickly.
Fatima: Going through failure as a team taught me that it makes us stronger and more united. At times, to avoid stress and ambiguity, we tried not to share the company's critical moments with our employees. But after this experience and seeing how everyone reacted, I decided to openly communicate both the positive and negative.
I found a balance between chaos and order. It sparked my curiosity to fear failure less, understanding that we'll likely face more failures in the future. However, I know we're ready to face them because they'll undoubtedly help us grow in different ways and levels.
I got to know myself during a crisis and realized the importance of self-compassion and self-care to maintain the strength needed during tough times. Ultimately, our example speaks louder than words, and maintaining emotional balance is crucial for effective leadership and collaboration.
Fatima: As founders, we had to process the situation ourselves before deciding to have an open and honest conversation with the team.
It was an uncomfortable discussion, mainly because we had just raised over a million dollars in investment to expand to the U.S. and everyone had worked incredibly hard to make that launch happen.
All 35 team members joined a video call where we broke the news: the work they had been doing for over six months had to be paused, and now we needed to sell the 5,000+ products we had shipped to the U.S. through other channels.
Contrary to our expectations, the team's reaction was incredibly positive. Everyone understood the situation and became more motivated than ever, knowing there were hundreds of artisans relying on this project whom we couldn't let down.
One of the most impactful moments for me was the artisans' reaction. They called us to ask how they could help and even offered financing options to ease the burden. That's when we realized the value of building strong working relationships with everyone in our company.
The communities we work with taught us a lot about resilience. They face crises more regularly and still find ways to recover despite the challenges. Navigating this uncertainty alongside them was both helpful and inspiring for us.
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Connect with Fatima!
Learn more about Someone Somewhere here.
Remember, our channels are open to any questions, complaints, feedback or collaborations: rich@fuckupnights.com.
Edited by
Ricardo Guerrero
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Let's transform our perception of failure and use it as a catalyst for growth.
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