{"id":9355,"date":"2025-10-21T10:41:42","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T13:41:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/investors.grupofalabella.com\/english\/?p=9355"},"modified":"2025-10-27T10:43:32","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T13:43:32","slug":"falabella-ceo-at-one-point-we-wanted-to-be-many-things-today-we-remember-what-were-good-at","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/investors.grupofalabella.com\/english\/2025\/10\/21\/falabella-ceo-at-one-point-we-wanted-to-be-many-things-today-we-remember-what-were-good-at\/","title":{"rendered":"Falabella CEO: \u201cAt one point we wanted to be many things, today we remember what we\u2019re good at\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"CEO de Falabella: \u201cEn alg\u00fan momento quisimos ser muchas cosas, hoy recordamos para qu\u00e9 somos buenos&quot;\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2OvxP9t8EA4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez appeared on <em>Di\u00e1logos de El Mostrador<\/em>. In a candid and down-to-earth conversation, the executive reflected on Falabella\u2019s change in direction, his leadership style, and how he navigated a perfect storm: board divisions, loss of investment grade, and the company in the red.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Amid the greatest challenges in Falabella\u2019s recent history, Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez took over as CEO of the group\u2014first on an interim basis, then confirmed\u2014with the mission of stabilizing a company hit by the pandemic, social unrest, internal conflicts, and an unprecedented stock market punishment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Invited to the latest episode of <em>Di\u00e1logos de El Mostrador<\/em>, Gonz\u00e1lez spoke about leadership, resilience, and how an entrepreneurial spirit shaped the recovery of the retail giant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI grabbed the ball and ran,\u201d he summarized, referring to the moment he had to take the helm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>His formula: return to the essentials, get the house in order, and focus on what Falabella has always done well. \u201cAt one point we wanted to be many things, but today we remember what we\u2019re good at,\u201d he said, referring to the decision to refocus the business on its core: retail, shopping centers, and financial services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Financial Storm<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One of the most difficult moments Gonz\u00e1lez faced was Falabella\u2019s loss of investment grade. \u201cWhen you lose investment grade, your future debt becomes much more expensive. Not the debt you have today, but what\u2019s coming. That\u2019s why we prepared: when our rating was downgraded, we were sitting on a billion dollars in cash,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That foresight was key to avoiding a bigger blow. His approach, he said, was to maintain discipline: \u201cI\u2019m going to focus on what I can control. I\u2019ll make sure the numbers are consistent, expenses are as low as possible, and capital allocation is much more rational. That I can control.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The crisis, he added, was also a test of leadership. \u201cLosing investment grade was a very tough moment, especially for me, because I had already experienced something similar at Endesa. We prepared a solid financial plan, but the agencies didn\u2019t think we\u2019d be able to deliver. Later, through our actions, we proved we could.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Two years later, Falabella is close to regaining its credit rating\u2014a milestone Gonz\u00e1lez attributes to a combination of austerity, focus, and trust in internal talent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The executive also emphasized the importance of balanced leadership: \u201cYou have to be gentle with people, but firm with facts and numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He also recalled lessons from his mentors\u2014like Juan Benavides\u2014and the value of maintaining a culture based on entrepreneurship, austerity, and customer service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cFalabella has been my home for nearly two decades,\u201d he stated. A phrase that sums up not only his personal connection to the company, but also the sense of belonging he has sought to restore in a group that, after a difficult period, is once again showing clear signs of recovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can read the full article on <em>El Mostrador<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.elmostrador.cl\/noticias\/multimedia\/dialogos-de-el-mostrador\/2025\/10\/19\/ceo-de-falabella-en-algun-momento-quisimos-ser-muchas-cosas-hoy-recordamos-para-que-somos-buenos\/\">here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez appeared on Di\u00e1logos de El Mostrador. In a candid and down-to-earth conversation, the executive reflected on Falabella\u2019s change in direction, his leadership style, and how he navigated a perfect storm: board divisions, loss of investment grade, and the company in the red. Amid the greatest challenges in Falabella\u2019s recent history, Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez took [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":9357,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"business_unit":[28],"class_list":["post-9355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sin-categoria","business_unit-grupo-falabella"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Falabella CEO: \u201cAt one point we wanted to be many things, today we remember what we\u2019re good at\u201d - Falabella (English version)<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/investors.grupofalabella.com\/english\/2025\/10\/21\/falabella-ceo-at-one-point-we-wanted-to-be-many-things-today-we-remember-what-were-good-at\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Falabella CEO: \u201cAt one point we wanted to be many things, today we remember what we\u2019re good at\u201d - Falabella (English version)\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez appeared on Di\u00e1logos de El Mostrador. In a candid and down-to-earth conversation, the executive reflected on Falabella\u2019s change in direction, his leadership style, and how he navigated a perfect storm: board divisions, loss of investment grade, and the company in the red. 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