He was barely 10 or 12 years old when he came to Cali for a vacation. He stayed at the house of an uncle who ran a store in the Obrero neighborhood.
When it was time to go home to Manizales, he told his mother that he wanted to stay working with his uncle “because he won talk and that he began to study at night.”
Last month, specifically on November 27, he completed 50 years in Cali, the city that has allowed him to have everything and even a little more.
He is a prominent businessman in the food sector, owner of Superinter supermarkets, which today are in the hands of Exito. In that world they know him as ‘the shopkeeper’ and he likes to be told that way.
All his life he has moved between vegetables, fruits and meats, and in that line he continues and will continue to do so until God gives him permission.
About two years ago, with his wife and family, he created La Montaña Agromercados, an independent chain of supermarkets, which today is the main protagonist of the sector because it rented five premises where LA 14 used to operate, the emblematic brand of the people of Cali and Valle del Cauca.
Last Friday the rental of the premises that he had for lease was confirmed
LA 14 in the port city of Buenaventura, with which Don Tulio completed six stores in total.
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This new brand is already being seen in Cosmocentro, in Calima, on Avenida Sexta and in Pasoancho. Also in Pereira, where LA 14 had a large supermarket.
He ‘played’ it for those locals because he feels very grateful to the city and the region. They have given everything and for that reason he says with great feeling that “for Cali and the Valley you have to bet everything.”
He remembers that when the premises on Avenida Sexta opened its doors to the public on December 4, he felt like a child again.
“People cried and they made me cry. They hugged me and thanked me because they saw LA 14. revive. Many old ladies who were loyal customers of LA 14 gave me lots of hugs and were happy to see the supermarket open again. What they made me feel was great, wonderful. The love and sense of belonging for that great supermarket chain is really impressive. It cannot be lost ”.
Around 800 jobs will be generated by the four stores that La Montaña will operate in Cali, but the number will continue to rise if the other micro-businesses are taken into account.
This is how Tulio Gómez Giraldo speaks, ‘the shopkeeper’, the manizalita who feels like one more Valle del Caucano.
Don Tulio remembers that he had not felt as much joy as he felt in November 2016 when América rose to the highest category of Colombian soccer (it is the main shareholder).
“People surprised me by the feeling that LA 14. transmits to them. And I repeat, many ladies cried and made me cry, but I must say that it is another kind of joy. Soccer is passion and the supermarkets is something that transcends the social and generates a sense of belonging ”.
But it is because of that passion for football that many recognized him when the doors of the northern supermarket, La Sexta, were opened to the public.
“It is incredible to see people in their 70s and 80s who come up to you and express their happiness to see the place open again. What it shows is the love they feel for the Cardona family (owners of the LA 14 brand); That is why I think that we Valle del Cauca must be in solidarity with this company and support it. My family and I made an effort to rent these establishments and regain jobs, “says Don Tulio.
Little by little the other supermarkets have begun to adapt for their reopening. Last week Pasoancho and Calima did it, two of the most recognized venues that LA 14 ran.
Now it is in the crosshairs of the headquarters that operated in Valle del Lili. The Buenaventura location was leased last Friday.
If the leasing process is successful, Mr. Tulio will take control of seven establishments in total. By the way, he will become one of the entrepreneurs in the food sector that will be able to generate the most jobs in the region.
No less than 800 jobs will be recovered in supermarkets and to that figure will be added the jobs that will also be generated by the microentrepreneurs and small businesses that operated around the establishments.
Only the Calima Shopping Center (in Cali) can generate about 2000 jobs. If you add the jobs in the other five shopping complexes, you can easily speak of a total of around 10,000 employees and all direct.
“I feel blessed and very satisfied to be able to give back to this beautiful city, at least in terms of employment, some of the personal satisfaction that I share with my family. Here in Cali I met the one who became my wife (Miryam) and mother of my daughters. In 1984 the first was born, Marcela, and a few years later Melissa would be born ”, she says.
Today, when the impact of the pandemic ‘shook’ the whole world and caused the closure of dozens of companies and the loss of thousands of jobs, Don Tulio thinks that the most important thing is that “we are alive and healthy. The last two years have been hard learning and great lessons, but here we go, with the desire to continue ‘starting engines’ in the different economic activities and taking the city forward ”.
It is not just a job for him or his family, it is also joint work with suppliers, employees and dealers. “I keep thanking you.” concluded.
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