By Carolina de la Cajiga
When starting a business, hardly any experience and capital are common but there is a lot of determination. Between 1990 and 2010, Efrain Castro decided to try his luck on the other side of the Rio Grande. He went as a mojado (one who enters the U.S. by crossing the river that divides Mexico and the U.S. without proper documentation). The first two times he took the chance everything went smoothly.
Once on the other side, he learned to apply tinted polarized film on automotive glass. Castro immediately realized the potential of bringing this technique back to sunny Mexico. Polarized glass reduces the glare and bright sunlight, making driving safer.
With the experience and training acquired, he returned and opened his shop, “Polarizado de Autos Castro.” At the time, his shop was the only one in San Miguel providing this service.
He explained that the most difficult part of the process is polarizing a rear window. “The film has to be cut replicating the curvature of the glass.” The application, with the help of a heat gun, requires patience and precision. The film has to stay in the right spot without wrinkles, and one must be careful not to tear it. “Shortly after opening my business, I accidentally broke the window in a very expensive truck,” he says clenching his fists. Fortunately, the client understood the situation and did not demand immediate payment. Castro paid him in installments. To this day, 20 years later, the client still takes his vehicles to be polarized and recommends him knowing he can be trusted.
Like most businesses, earnings go up and down. In one of those downturns that drag on and seem eternal, Castro, somewhat desperate, decided to go back to the other side of the U.S./Mexico border to try his luck again. He was confident his previous experience would be helpful.
Close to the border, criminals intercepted the van he was traveling in with other adventurers. For a week, all were locked up in solitary confinement while the kidnappers negotiated la lana (slang for money) to pay the ransom. He never learned where they were taken to or by whom. “The anxiety of not knowing if I would ever see my family again is indescribable. I’m haunted,” says Castro, who is still perturbed.
With more debts than he had when he left, but alive and kicking, he returned to San Miguel ready to echarle todas las ganas (give one’s best). With time and effort, he recovered financially and his business has improved year after year. In addition to car windows, he has expanded his services by adding the polarization of windows in homes and businesses.
His hard work and commitment to his business have kept «Polarizado de Autos Castro» number one in San Miguel. The level of satisfaction and recommendations from his customers is what Castro is most proud of. “Like any small entrepreneur, one has to be a juggler to cover all the bases: have the space, equipment, know-how, and obviously, the clients. There is also advertising and promoting which is repeatedly needed. The more I do this, the more efficient I become and the more clients I have. They spread the word for me which is dandy!” In the future, he is planning to add the selling of accessories and hire one or two people to continue growing.
Castro’s recommendation to those who want to start their own business: “Get yourself fully prepared by learning as much as possible, be consistent and try not to get discouraged when things don’t turn out immediately or as you dreamed. Above all, be honest.” With a gleeful and mischievous smile, he states, “be patient and enjoy your triumphs!”
You can find Castro’s shop in Calle de Ánimas 41, Centro, 415 153 5713, and as “Castro Polarized Cars” on Instagram and Facebook.
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