Margarita’s journey to decent work

At 29, Margarita never imagined she would be an entrepreneur. Today, alongside her partners Lourdes and Herlinda, she runs PAU PAU, a brand that sells alpaca products globally.

“I was a rebellious girl,” Margarita recalls. Her father left when she was young, leaving her mother to raise three daughters while working as an assistant to a bricklayer. As the eldest, Margarita often joined her mother on job sites to help make ends meet.

From struggles to scholarships

After high school, Margarita became a mother herself, without support from her child’s father. “I wanted to study, but I didn’t have the resources,” she says. That changed when she received a scholarship through World Vision and Banco Mercantil Santa Cruz, a bank and financial services company in Bolivia. Margarita worked hard and completed a technical degree. However, like many graduates, she faced a wall of job rejections due to a lack of experience.

Finding confidence and an entrepreneurial spark

In 2020, Margarita joined World Vision’s Youth Ready program, part of the Vision for Vulnerable Youth Initiative. There, everything changed.

“Youth Ready helped me overcome my fears and become confident in what I want in life,” she says.

One module on entrepreneurship sparked her interest. Together with her sister and her friend, who also participated in Youth Ready, Margarita began making and selling baby clothes. They named their new business PAU PAU after Margarita’s son Paulo.

Listening to customers, learning to pivot

Early sales taught the young entrepreneurs to listen to their customers and adjust their products accordingly. Alpaca garments for women sold better than baby clothes, so PAU PAU pivoted to produce blankets, hats and jackets.

By 2022, their designs were being exported to France, Peru, and Costa Rica. Today, PAU PAU is formally registered and pays taxes that contribute to Bolivia’s growth, marking a milestone in transforming dignified work into sustainable livelihoods.

Beyond income: A brand with purpose

Beyond income, Margarita says the venture has brought something deeper: dignity, autonomy and a vision for the future.

“Decent work doesn’t just mean employment,” she explains. “It means formal work, social security and development opportunities.”

Now, she dreams of growing PAU PAU into a company that hires more young women, like she and her partners, who want to create better lives for themselves and their children.

The advice she would give to other entrepreneurs starting businesses with friends: communication, organization and clear roles and responsibilities are key to success.

“We’ve learned that communication, respect and emotional support are as important as any business skill,” she says.

World Day for Decent Work is held annually on October 7. It is a chance to call for jobs that respect the rights of all workers, which include fair pay, safe workplaces and respect for workers’ well-being. Margarita’s story shows how investing in youth can transform adversity into opportunity, train young people in entrepreneurship and help them create decent work for themselves and their communities.

World Vision Canada’s Vision for Vulnerable Youth (VVYI) project is supported by The Barrett Family Foundation and individual Canadian donors. Operating in 10 countries in Latin America and Africa, Youth Ready equips young people with the tools to pursue education, employment or entrepreneurship.