Paqua: Cradle-to-Cradle Hydroponic Systems for Urban Food Independence
Co-founded and led design for an urban agriculture startup that challenged Colombia's relationship with food production. Over three years, we designed and locally manufactured modular hydroponic systems that sold 600+ units, empowered conflict-affected women through entrepreneurship, and pioneered sustainable manufacturing in a country with limited industrial infrastructure.
The Problem
In 2013, Santiago Rodríguez and I—along with partners Sebastián Salazar and Miguel Santaella—began asking a fundamental question: How can cities reconnect with their food sources?
Urban populations had become completely severed from agricultural processes. Children didn't know where vegetables came from. Families were dependent on fragile, carbon-intensive supply chains. Meanwhile, Colombia's internal conflict had displaced millions of rural farmers who understood food production but had lost their land.
We saw hydroponics—which uses 90% less water than traditional agriculture—as more than efficient technology. Food independence was revolutionary. If families could grow their own food, they would educate their children, understand resource cycles, and build foundations for sustainable living.
Our vision: Create modular, plug-and-play hydroponic systems designed, manufactured, and sold in Colombia, by Colombians, for Colombians.
The Manufacturing Challenge
Colombia lacked robust product development infrastructure. Most industrial capacity served construction or large-scale processes. Small-scale, precision manufacturing for consumer products barely existed.
The obstacles were immediate:
Limited industrial partners. Finding manufacturers willing to work with a startup on small runs was nearly impossible. Many had never produced the components we needed.
Manual processes without standardization. Colombian metalwork relied on hand fabrication. Parts from one batch wouldn't fit parts from another. We convinced metalworkers to use wooden patterns as standardization tools—a low-tech solution that created consistency and made modular assembly possible.
Sourcing specialized components. Irrigation parts existed, but distribution served large agribusiness, not startups ordering small quantities.
Cradle-to-cradle constraints. We committed to single-material construction, complete recyclability, and local sourcing. In Colombia's limited manufacturing landscape, this was borderline impossible.
But we persisted. Sustainable design can only be sustainable if it serves a real need.
The Process: Iteration and Local Production
Phase 1: Learning Through Prototypes (2013)
We started with PVC pipe prototypes—spray-painted plumbing components mounted on walls. They were ugly but functional. Friends and adventurous early adopters let us install them. We learned the technology worked, but user experience needed dramatic improvement.
Phase 2: Market Validation (2014)
We evolved to sheet metal prototypes with refined design language. These attracted paying customers beyond our immediate network. We ran urban agriculture workshops that generated revenue, built community, and created evangelists. Miguel developed custom nutrient formulas, adding another revenue stream and product differentiation.
Phase 3: Industrialized Production (2014-2016)
With validation and cash flow, we invested in rotational molding for food-grade plastic components at scale. This enabled our flagship product: Paqua Home.
Paqua Home was modular, plug-and-play, and designed for families. Clean aesthetic. Complete service model with plant subscriptions, nutrients, and maintenance visits. No technical knowledge required. Made entirely in Colombia.
We expanded the line:
Bonsai — A small, non-electric planter where users blew into a tube to oxygenate the water. The air you breathed became the air the plant used.
Modular Community Gardens — Systems with 160-plant capacity for rooftops and shared spaces.
Cannab — A specialized planter for home cannabis cultivation, offering a legal alternative within Colombia's regulatory framework.
Production Victories
Through persistence and problem-solving, we achieved:
- Food-grade plastic via rotational molding
- Standardized metal fabrication using wooden pattern tooling
- Ceramic elements produced locally
- Reliable supply chain for irrigation components
- 65% lower cost than international competitors
I led all industrial design, branding, visual identity, and graphic production. Every product and piece of marketing carried consistent design language: clean, sustainable, accessible, Colombian.
Leading the design team meant encouraging creativity while navigating constant constraints—budget limitations, manufacturing delays, and the technical complexity of creating truly modular systems. I learned that effective leadership in startups is about removing obstacles and empowering people to solve problems independently.
Impact
Over three years, Paqua sold over 600 modular home units and 20-40 large community systems.
Parents reported their children started eating vegetables for the first time—because they had grown them themselves. The hydroponic garden became a living system that families cared for together, creating social rituals around weekend harvests and cooking with homegrown herbs.
We offered full-service support: subscription delivery of seedlings and nutrients, plus home visits for maintenance. Customer satisfaction was high, and many became passionate advocates.
Extension: La Hoja - Empowerment Through Entrepreneurship
In 2017, through my friendship with Juliana Hernández of Artemisas (an NGO supporting women victims of Colombia's armed conflict), we extended Paqua's impact into social entrepreneurship.
La Hoja was an alliance between displaced women's community, Entre Pasos Foundation, and Paqua. We facilitated a participatory design process:
Juliana and Artemisas organized workshops where Santiago and I presented the concept. The women co-created the project with us. We provided entrepreneurial training, technical instruction on operating hydroponic systems, and product development guidance.
We chose pesto sauce as the output—unfamiliar to the women but able to command premium prices in Bogotá's high-end market, especially with the story of women reclaiming their lives.
We financed and installed three large modular systems (160 plants each) in their building. The women grew basil, processed pesto, and sold it. Through their leadership and Juliana's support, they generated independent income, built collective business skills, and evolved the recipe into their own creation.
Some continue producing and selling pesto today.
My Departure and Key Learnings
In 2017, I left Paqua due to personal circumstances. The departure was amicable. Miguel Santaella acquired the company and continues operating it today.
What I learned:
Market-product fit matters more than technology. We were in love with hydroponic potential, but Colombia has abundant, cheap food sources. Our product became a high-end niche offering for enthusiasts, not a mass-market solution.
B2C is expensive. Business-to-consumer models require constant marketing and high acquisition costs. We explored B2B (restaurants, schools) but couldn't gain traction before my departure.
Team dynamics are everything. Entrepreneurship is harder in practice than on paper. Navigating founder relationships, decision-making under pressure, and maintaining shared vision through setbacks—these social dynamics are as critical as the product itself.
Sustainable design must serve real needs. Cradle-to-cradle principles and local manufacturing were meaningful, but values alone weren't enough.
Legacy
Paqua taught me how to design for manufacturing constraints, build brands from nothing, lead teams through ambiguity, and integrate social impact authentically.
The products still exist in Colombian homes. The women of La Hoja still make pesto. The workshops inspired people to think differently about food and sustainability.
Paqua didn't become a massive company, but it transformed the people it touched.