Juan Manuel Pancic defines himself as a fairly ordinary person. He likes sports, he played basketball all his life – even professionally in Uruguay –, listens to podcasts and enjoys hanging out with his friends. He also considers himself a curious person, one of those who is constantly looking to learn something new. Perhaps that last characteristic is the one that best explains his journey.
Before starting a business, he spent six years at Itaú working in data science and machine learning. But the desire to build something of our own was there long before. At a very young age he created his first startup with the same co-founder with whom he develops TripWip today. The idea of starting up again never disappeared.
Until, in 2023, an opportunity appeared almost by accident. That summer, Juan Manuel needed to rent a car in Uruguay. The experience was bad: the vehicle they showed him was not the one he was looking for, costs appeared that were not clear and the entire process seemed not very transparent. He ended up informally renting a car from a neighbor. And there he began to ask himself a question.
A bad experience that turned into an opportunity
Juan Manuel already knew the rental model between individuals. I had used it in other countries, mainly in the United States, and I knew it worked. What I didn’t understand was why something similar couldn’t be developed in Latin America.
• What did you see in that experience that made you think there was an opportunity?
I kept thinking a lot about that rental business model between individuals. I already knew that model, I had used it in other countries, mainly in the United States, and I realized that in Latin America it was something that could perfectly be applied.
This is how TripWip was born. The company seeks to connect people who need a vehicle with owners who have a car available, transforming an asset that often remains parked into a source of income.
«People are increasingly detached from these types of assets and increasingly seek to access things as a service and not as an asset«
But building one of these businesses is not easy. Two-sided marketplaces have a particular difficulty: they need to simultaneously develop supply and demand. In some markets one may be missing; in others, the other.
Therefore, one of the first lessons from TripWip was to understand that not all countries needed exactly the same strategy. The opportunity may be regional. The execution, however, has to be local.
«In some countries the supply is more complex, in others the demand is more complex, so you have to realize that very quickly and develop specific strategies«
Learn to execute
For Juan Manuel, one of the biggest challenges of starting a business has been precisely that: understanding where the value of the company really lies.
During the first years they tried to do many things at the same time. Over time they learned to focus on what really moved the business. The quality of the vehicles available on the platform, for example, ended up being much more important than having too wide an offer.
«Perhaps concentrating on having fewer vehicles, but good ones and not so numerous and bad, that changed our business a lot«
They also learned to turn off what doesn’t work. For a founder, he says, understanding those dynamics can be more important than trying to grow all areas simultaneously. And there appears another learning: focus.
• What decisions have been decisive for TripWip to scale?
Understand where the business is going. Founders, when they are building a startup, have that be constantly monitoring…
… If the value proposition is good and what is the main bottleneck.
The other great difficulty has been raising capital. Juan Manuel recognizes that today the market is much more demanding than during the boom of 2021.
Rounds take longer, investors think more carefully about where to put their money, and founders need to talk to many more funds before getting funded.
But he also finds something positive in that scenario. For him, the contraction of capital also works as a filter. Companies that perhaps could grow driven by a particularly favorable market today need to demonstrate that there really is a business behind it.
«I always thought it was going to work, because the opportunity seems very big to me. Maybe there were complex moments, but what we do is one hundred percent convinced that there is an incredible opportunity. It’s more of an execution issue.”
A team that plays for the same side
If there is a concept that Juan Manuel repeats during the conversation, it is the team. His experience in sports has a lot to do with that view.
For him, basketball didn’t just teach him discipline or resilience. It also taught him to trust other people, understand roles and assume that an outcome never depends exclusively on one person.
«For me, sport is the one that forges the most values for humanity. It teaches you resilience, discipline, having goals, being constant, camaraderie, teamwork and leadership.”
They also try to transfer that philosophy to TripWip.
Today the company operates with teams distributed between Uruguay, Argentina and Mexico, but maintains a good part of its central areas in Uruguay, especially technology and marketing. As they enter new markets, they incorporate teams more focused on business development, alliances and growth.
Team building, in fact, is one of the most enjoyable parts of his role as CEO. He has a particular aspiration for TripWip: that the company ends up becoming a school for talent.
• What does it mean to you to be a good leader?
One of my greatest aspirations as an entrepreneur is for TripWip to become a school and a brand on the resume of many, where tomorrow several more startups will emerge from TripWip..
His advice to those just starting out follows a similar logic. Don’t wait for the perfect moment. Begin. And learn to distinguish between people who can really contribute and those who simply have an opinion.
Juan Manuel seems to have found an idea that connects a good part of his career. Entrepreneurship, like basketball, is not about doing everything alone. It’s about knowing when to run, when to pass the ball and, above all, trusting the team next to you.
