Season 3, Episode 10 - On the edge of thriving

On The Heels of Innovation with Ted Zoller

With Cecilia Polanco, founder and CEO, So Good Pupusas

After several years of investing in her El Salvadorian-inspired, socially driven food truck businesses, 2020 promised to be a breakthrough year for Cecilia Polanco and the So Good Pupusas team. They’d paid off debt from purchasing trucks, refined their business model and were primed for profitability. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. In this episode, Polanco talks about how she’s using her entrepreneurial mindset to shift from short-term coping mechanisms to long-term pivot strategies. Learn how her venture, which also serves up social good in the form of higher education scholarships to undocumented and DACAmented students, is wrestling with its own business future and the issues of racial equity and food access. Polanco shares advice on what aspiring social entrepreneurs need to make sure they know to ensure that the positive social impact they make isn’t outweighed by unintentional harm.