MICHELLE AMELIA LEÓN FRANCO THE FACE BEHIND THE STRATEGIC PLANNING AND EXECUTION OF LA AURORA’S DIGITAL PRESENCE

Michelle Amelia León, is young promise in the cigar industry. At 24 years old she is already part of the La Aurora team, the first cigar factory in the Dominican Republic. In 2016, she received a full scholarship to pursue her professional studies at Creighton University in Omaha,

Nebraska, graduating in 2020 with a double degree in Marketing, with a concentration in Strategic Communications and International Business.

Michelle is part of the fourth generation of the León family, dedicated to cultivation of tobacco, which is why she has always felt part of the cigar world. She grew up surroun- ded by the great passion of her parents, uncles and grandparents for what they did. Michelle tells us, “I began to enter more into this world, doing summer internships at La Aurora and I continued like this until the time of my university education, going through different departments. The summers became an enriching experience for me, which made me fall in love with the tobacco industry even more”.

Going deeper into this relationship between Michelle Amelia and the cigar world, we loved getting to know personal details that we will tell you in this interesting interview.

CIGARRO DOMINICA-

NO: Focusing on family life around tobacco, what anecdote do you evoke?

MICHELLA AMELIA

LEÓN: From about the age of 7, I would go to ride skates in what at the time was the León Jimenes Group. This space became my playground. By associating the factory with fun, I stopped seeing it as a workplace and began to feel like my second home.

CD: The last name León has a great weight in the tobacco world, how do you think is the effect in your professional life?

MA: My last name can be associated with strength or power, however, to me it really means integrity, humility and discipline. In my family we inherited a creed that establishes “...we are a family of peasant origin, of those forged with persistent work and strong sun....” I feel proud to be part of an honest and persevering family, to belong to a legacy of effort and hard work. This commits me even more to give continuity to those values that formed me and to honor with my actions the many generations that gave themselves body and soul to the tobacco world.

CD: We can say that you are the mirror of your mother; in addition to the physical appearance and the fact that you bear her name, what have you inherited from her that will help you make your way in your personal and professional life?

MA: My mother is an intelligent, strong, courageous and very determined woman. I know that I can count on her at any time, since she has taught me how unconditional her support is. In short, she is my role model and I always try to be as similar to her as possible in terms of my decisions, both dayto-day and important decisions at work.

CD: We know that you are part of La Aurora’s digital media / marketing team. When did you start working in the company and what functions are under your responsibility?

MA: After I graduated from university, my father told me that was project running to create La Aurora’s E-commerce, and asked me if I would like to join the team. I agreed without hesitation. Upon successful completion of this project, I took the initiative to create a Digital Media department, as I understood the importance of this. My main responsibility is to manage La Aurora’s online image in social networks, online magazines, website, e-mail marketing, in short, I’m in charge of the strategic planning and execution of the entire digital presence of the brand.

CD: Going to work in a company that is 120 years old, and being the daughter of the owner has positive and negative things. How your start in the company was and what do you recommend to other people who are going to go through this same process?

MA: My beginnings were beautiful. I started working in the store and the La Aurora team is like a big family, who welcomed me with open arms. In the store, I interacted with customers and was very excited to meet them face to face. There I learned more about the products portfolio, their tasting notes and qualities. At home, I am “the owner’s daughter”, at La Aurora, I’m Michelle, a young woman with her own identity who made a lot of effort to be prepared to be there, with a great desire to continue learning and the great hope of contributing more each day to growth and business development. As for my recommendation, it is always to be willing to learn, support and be allies of all those people who have been part of the team for many years and know the processes in depth and never be afraid to ask any questions.

CD: What has been the biggest challenge you have faced in the workplace? And what has been your best reward?

MA: The biggest challenge was belonging to the team that created the E-commerce LaAurora.com, there were long months of planning, hard work, meetings, tests, errors, but above all, a lot of learning. At the time of launching the page, all the effort mentioned above was worth, since, personally, I feel that we transferred a 120-year-old company to new business platforms. We found the right balance of portraying a modern company, but mainly preserving the beauty of our legacy and traditions.