Employment History:
Sales Director, Sunset Resorts (1996-2000)

Published Works:

Public Speaking Experience:

Why She is an Expert:
Ms. Garcia understands each aspect of the traveler’s experience, from deciding where to go to making reservations to getting to the destination. “I’ve been the one to receive travelers at the airport; I’ve been a concierge; I’ve been at the front desk; I’ve been in the finance department in collections,” she states. “I understand where the consumer is coming from.”

Best Advice:
“Analyze your existing database of who you have. Do a profiling of your type of market. Learn who your buyers are and what they are purchasing. Analyze their behavior. Revisit that kind of niche market, pamper them, incentive them for referrals and then use that profile database you have to continue your marketing strategies.”

Passionate about:

Biography Excerpt:
Erika L. Garcia, chief executive officer of Sunset Group and Premier Cancun Vacations, Blue Strawberry Resorts, views the destinations in Mexico - which include Cancun and the Riviera Maya - as more than just sun and fun. “They are also the entrance and window to the Mayan world and its history,” she says. Since she founded her company in 2000, it has become one of the leading vacation ownership developers in the region. Her two companies are affiliated with the Sunset Group.

     

Cambridge Who's Who: What are your short-term and long-term career goals? And what specific steps have you taken toward achieving these goals?  
ERIKA L GARCIA :  The long-term goal involves land I recently purchased near Chichen Itza, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, which is two hours from Cancun. My dream is to work with a marketer and developer to finance a boutique [and] high-end resort with two- to three-room bungalows, surrounded by a golf course. In Egypt, where the pyramids are, I saw a lot of resorts around the monuments – people can actually view them. I can imagine this boutique resort overlooking Chichen Itza. We recently launched a new membership type program, which appeals to corporations and individuals. It’s called “Me Time,” because everybody needs ‘me time.’

What is the most difficult obstacle or challenge you have faced in pursuit of your goals?
The task of getting a project approved by the ecological entity in Mexico, called Semarnat [Secretaría de medio ambiente y recursos naturales]. Anything that you do in their jungle must be approved by this entity. We would conduct the right study to make sure we are not damaging anything and we would use the jungle in the right way.

Usually, the reason borrowers can’t afford a property anymore is due to a change in the financial environment in their households. Some of that is lender-imposed. As a lender, you need to be accountable for the hardships you’ve created for this borrower - there has to be an element of accountability.