EPISODE III: Piedad Garrido
Our superwoman Piedad is a person with a lot of determination and family spirit. Her career has a lot of variety but always doing what she liked. She has created from scratch a wine brand with her family without stoping her work as a journalist. And it has reached the top. In this blog, we tell you her story.
As a journalist, why did you start creating a wine brand? What was your motivation?
Indeed, I am a journalist, I have been working in the world of journalism for more than 20 years. I started in the lifestyle press and from there I went to corporate communication that is what I am currently working on. And from there to moving to the world of wine is something that comes to me from tradition, my father is a farmer is dedicated to the cultivation of cereal, vine and olive. He has always worked hard in favor of the quality of the grape, in creating different products, and he created a very unusual plantation in Castilla la Mancha, such as Pedro Ximénez, and from there we decided that we were going to make a very special wine with that grape. And what better way to call that wine that with my mother’s name? Then this project is a tribute to my mother and on the other hand a tribute to my father and his effort on making the quality always prevail to make wine and oil.
How has your daily life changed after having founded Bodegas Marisol Rubio?
It has changed a lot, because if I had a busy life before when I was working all day as a journalist imagine when another project such as creating a company right from the start is added to my life, which is the case of Bodegas Marisol Rubio. So it has changed a lot because now I use every second of the day to do things. I have always been a very organized person but now I am even more because I need to have everything very structured and organized to be able to reach everything. Now on weekends, I think it is important to have leisure, for me this is a hobby, work, it is all because it's my passion but every weekend I have something to do: go to the countryside, go to the farm ... My life has changed in the sense that I have much busier hours than before, but I'm happy because I'm doing something in what I believe, that is working so good, with an excellent reception in the public ... and that motivates me and keeps me going. So I hope that my life continues with this change.
What have been the main challenges along the way?
There are a lot of challenges, imagine creating a brand of zero and in a world as competitive as that of wine. It was a very risky challenge, first we created a different product, there is no dry white wine Pedro Ximénez in Toledo. But we firmly believed and went for it, then creating a brand of zero, nobody knows you and you break into a competitive market. But the satisfaction has been so great: because today we have our place in the market, in less than four months we have been in many media (La Razón, ABC, Telva, etc) And we have our little space, in social networks we also have many followers, all are organic, and we are delighted.
With work, belief and having a good product everything is achieved.
What is the secret to being so successful and growing so much in such a short time?
Believe in what you do and work for it. Nothing comes by magic. Everything comes from a lot of work and effort. I even always do a little more, I always believe that more can be given, that more can be offered… I have the luck of having very hardworking parents: my father is a hard worker by nature and my mother too, a very special person, very hardworking and dedicated to others. Those teachings that I have had since I was a child at the end come out. There is so much effort and love behind each bottle that the public feels it. When something is good and liked the word of mouth works, the media echo, now with the social networks spreads everything very quickly. Then success comes because you have a good product, if not is impossible.
What is the ideal plan that would accompany your wine?
A plan where there is a lot of love, it doesn't have to be a couple's love, it can be family, friends ... I have a post on my blog called "Where there is wine there is love" that talks about where there is always a good wine there is love. A date with a good friend, a date with your partner, a date with your family… any plan where there is love is ideal to accompany by a good wine such as Marisol Rubio.
Is there any woman who has inspired you in your life?
My mother, of course. For me my example is always my mother. Example of struggle, effort. Every time people tell me that I look like her, I think I hope I have 5% of my mother, I was satisfied with that. My mother is my great inspiration, super brave and a real fighter. My mother, no doubt.
What advice would you give to other women who also dream of having their own business or launching their own brand? Fight for it, life is only two days and in the end you have to enjoy it to the fullest. Work is a very important part and I think it is essential to do what you like. In this life I still have not stayed with the wish I had done something. You have to do the things you believe in. There are people who are scared by the economic issue and ask them self : how am I going to launch a project and leave my job?. I understand it, the fears I understand them, but I think you have to overcome them because when you believe in something and work for it in the end that comes out. So I think the best advice is to fight for what they believe in, because it will take a little more or a little less but in the end it comes out for sure.
What are your favorite hobbies and plans for weekends?
My main hobby is to travel, I love to travel, I would be traveling all day and it is what I have spent most time in my life: traveling whenever I can, knowing other cultures I am passionate about... I really like hiking, lately I do it less because Marisol Rubio has me trapped but I like walking a lot. I love art, I love the whole theme of museums; I also love the theater and the cinema. Being with my family, going to the countryside, I take the bike I go to the countryside and I enjoy a lot. I love sunbathing, the beach. I love going to good restaurants. I love being with people, and the more the years go by, the more I select the people who really love me. Above all that, with that I am already happy.
How is a day in your life and how do you organize to get to everything on time?
I have always been a super-organized person, very tidy. Now I can do more because now I have many more things to do and for me the organization is basic. I try to group tasks, I write down everything. I am very “paper and pen” person, any little thing you can imagine I write it down and ordered it and prioritize it. The role of prioritizing is essential, I make my lists and then I put my numbers, there are times that I have to pass things from one list to another because I didn't have time to do it. But always pointing, ordering and organizing. And going with my piece of paper everywhere, wherever I go I take my agenda and my papers because for my organizing it is essential.
