# Manuela Sánchez Villamarín

> Colombian entrepreneur and Laika cofounder Manuela Sánchez Villamarín became CEO in August 2025 after leading retail and the company’s physical-store strategy. Her earlier work spans technology companies, growth and customer experience.

- **Role:** Cofounder and CEO at Laika Mascotas
- **Organizations:** Laika Mascotas, Rappi, IBM, Oracle
- **Nationality:** Colombian
- **Education:** Business Administration, Universidad de La Sabana, Master’s in International Management, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Digital marketing studies, CESA
- **Known for:** Cofounded Laika alongside Camilo Sánchez, Tulio Jiménez and Andrea González., Received iNNpulsa Colombia’s high-impact entrepreneur recognition in 2022., Led Laika’s retail and omnichannel strategy before becoming CEO.

## Career timeline

- **Before Laika** — Worked at IBM, Oracle and Rappi.
- **2017–2018** — Laika’s founding period; retrospective accounts date the beginnings to 2017, while company announcements use 2018.
- **2022** — Publicly identified as cofounder and Global Chief Growth Officer.
- **2024** — Public interviews identify her with customer experience; her own year-end post describes leading retail learning and seven stores.
- **2025-08** — Named CEO, succeeding Camilo Sánchez after serving as retail director.
- **2026-09** — Laika’s new Bogotá experiential-store format is reported, with 23 Colombian stores.

## Achievements

- Cofounded Laika alongside Camilo Sánchez, Tulio Jiménez and Andrea González.
- Received iNNpulsa Colombia’s high-impact entrepreneur recognition in 2022.
- Led Laika’s retail and omnichannel strategy before becoming CEO.

## Latest updates

- **2026-08** — Reflected publicly on her first year as CEO and the responsibility of succeeding her brother.
- **2026-09** — A new Bogotá experiential store was reported; the announced network was 23 stores in Colombia.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manuela-sanchez/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/manuela-sanchez-villamarin
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-21