By Pía Yovanovic, Founder and Director of Prefiero el Maule
When I travel and say that I am from Chile, many times the eyes of my interlocutors light up imagining Patagonia, the wines of the Central Valley or the majesty of the Andes. And it is at that moment when I take the opportunity to tell them about a place that I have engraved in my heart: the Maule.
Five years ago, in the midst of the pandemic and a scenario full of uncertainty, a simple idea was born: to show the best of ourselves. Thus began Prefiero el Maule, a movement that emerged as a call to look with pride at our region and its people, an affectionate invitation to prefer to buy local and that today has become a living community, with its own voice, that inspires with positive content and connects the entrepreneurs of Maule with Chile and the world.
Today, when I look back, I am thrilled to see that an idea born in a province has managed to transcend borders. Because Maule is not just a geographical area: it is identity, history and resilience. The wines that compete in Bordeaux, the fruits that sweeten tables in Asia, the unique horsehair craftsmanship of Rari that amazes the world, and the creative talents that cross the Atlantic to exhibit at European fairs... all this is Maule.
As director of the Latin American Women's Network, I have seen how female leadership transforms communities and economies. Prefiero Maule is also a space for that: for entrepreneurial women to dare to grow, connect and project themselves without limits.
At Prefiero el Maule we work every day to make these stories known to the world. We have learned that strengthening the local aspect does not mean staying small, but opening up to the world from our roots. Our regional brand today dialogues with the Chile Country Brand: we carry our flag with pride, convinced that when an entrepreneur from Maule grows, Chile grows with him.
From Talca, Curicó, Linares and Cauquenes, we bring to the world stories of innovation, respect for the environment and a way of doing business that puts people at the center. This look dialogues naturally with the purpose of the Country Brand: to show the best of Chile through its people.
We have discovered that the local is also global: each product or service created at
el Maule carries with it the story of a fertile, resilient and authentic territory. That story deserves to cross borders.
Today, more than ever, I believe that great changes do not come from above. They come from the territory. From next to your house, from the stand at the fair, from the community radio station. And that is what Prefiero el Maule has cultivated for five years: an affective and economic network where no one is redundant, where everyone counts. Because Prefiero el Maule is not only a regional movement: it is a way of telling the world who we Chileans are when we work together.
