Our Story
Our story began in the Sonoran Desert of Southern Arizona, where we met as undergraduate students at the University of Arizona. From our first encounter at a volunteering event, we quickly bonded over shared ambitions and entrepreneurial dreams.
Having both grown up in entrepreneurial families, we had an instilled sense of grit and hard work which we carried with us in work and school. Despite a coast-to-coast (and at times, cross-border) long distance relationship, our shared vision kept us deeply connected.
Our first entrepreneurial venture together was the purchase of a rental property in Sonora, MX. While it certainly has shown us the ups and downs of ownership, this investment allowed us to stress-test our strength as a professional partnership and we saw an opportunity to create a deeply fulfilling career together, side-by-side.
More recently, we decided that we have a strong desire to acquire and operate a small business for the long-term, influenced by our experience with family small businesses. We believe in the power of having a strong business partner who you can trust fully, and who better than the person you have committed to for life?
We founded Sonoran Family Enterprises to formalize our business partnership, built upon the core principles which we believe should underscore every great business venture. As partners in business and life, we look forward to combining our strengths, determination, and shared values to be stewards of your legacy.
The Entrepreneurs
Alexandra Andrino
Alexandra is an Arizona native, raised by two parents who immigrated to the U.S. from Latin America. Growing up in an immigrant household instilled a deep sense of tenacity in Alexandra from an early age.
Following in the entrepreneurial spirit of her parents, Alexandra began pursuing small business ventures as early as middle school.
She started her career at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where she provided M&A advisory services to Power & Utility companies across the U.S. and Mexico. She later joined GI Partners, investing in Cybersecurity, Payments, and Wine businesses. While completing her MBA, Alexandra worked with two small business CEOs in the Cybersecurity and Early Childhood Education sectors, supporting Go-To-Market efforts and broader strategic initiatives.
Alexandra holds a BSBA in Finance from the University of Arizona and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
First Business Venture: Making and selling cakes for birthdays, graduations, and weddings!
Alan Bernal
Alan was born and raised in Sonora, MX, in a family whose values of hard work and entrepreneurship shaped his aspirations at a young age. He was a dedicated high-performance swimmer for 12 years before he moved to the U.S. for college, the first in his family to live in the U.S.
Alan spent his early career at Niagara Bottling where he managed project warehouse automation, operator training, and process improvements. During that time, he also managed a short-term rental business in Mexico. He later joined Databricks, an AI Infrastructure company, as a sales professional to help expand the company’s presence in Latin America and in the US small enterprise market.
Alan holds a BSBA in Management Information Systems and Entrepreneurship from the University of Arizona.
First Business Venture: Running a fresh juice stand in my neighborhood!