Oscar Barrera — How Business Anthropology Helped A Sourdough Company Grow
Release Date: 01/05/2026
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info_outlineWhat if the fastest route to meaningful growth isn’t about launching another ad campaign, hiring more salespeople, or optimizing your funnel? What if the real accelerator is simply listening—really listening—to what’s already happening around you?
In this episode of On the Brink with Andi Simon, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Oscar Barrera, PhD—a brilliant corporate anthropologist and innovation strategist based in Mexico. Oscar and I share a core conviction: anthropology isn’t just something you do; it’s a way of seeing the world. It allows leaders to notice subtle patterns—those taking shape in their markets, inside their own companies, and in the everyday lives of their customers—even when the clues are hiding in plain sight.
Oscar’s work drives home a powerful point: the real obstacles to growth are often hidden. Not because they’re imaginary, but because we haven’t been trained to spot them.
Meet Dr. Oscar Barrera: An Anthropologist Forging His Own Path
Oscar’s journey is as unconventional as it is inspiring. He earned his doctorate in social and cultural anthropology at the University of Washington, with years of fieldwork in Guatemala’s highlands. But like so many academics, he realized that the expected career path—university teaching—wasn’t really available. So Oscar got creative. He returned home to Mexico and started his own consulting practice from the ground up. He learned the language of business by reading voraciously, listening intently, and immersing himself in the entrepreneurial world—joining business groups, building relationships, and cultivating a brand that helped business leaders understand how anthropology could transform what they do.
Through his firm, Antropologia Corporativa, Oscar helps organizations unlock deep understanding about their customers, employees, and markets—then turn those insights into human-centered strategies for growth and innovation. He also hosts a fantastic podcast called Nuevas Posibilidades (“New Possibilities”), which explores innovation, anthropology, and the future of work.
A Real-World Case: Sourdough in a Sweet Bread Nation
Oscar shared a wonderful story that brings anthropology to life. A bakery owner in Mexico was crafting sourdough bread: wholesome, preservative-free, and free of additives. But he was up against a market where bread is usually sweet, steeped in tradition, and sold cheaply.
Here’s the twist: the bakery wasn’t struggling with demand. Instead, something unexpected was happening—distributors (mostly women) were approaching the bakery on their own, asking if they could resell the bread in their hometowns.
The owner’s question wasn’t theoretical—it was urgent: Who are these women, and how can I grow this kind of distribution model intentionally? As he put it, he wanted “the formula.”
Why Anthropology Was Essential
Oscar’s first instinct was to do what anthropologists do best: ethnography. Go to the site, observe, listen, and understand the full context. But travel simply wasn’t possible. So he adapted, because good anthropology is all about flexibility. He used remote interviews—speaking with distributors and customers over the phone and online. And what he learned should be a wake-up call for every leader: People will tell you what matters to them—if you listen with the right kind of attention.
Oscar was surprised that sometimes meeting online made people more comfortable. It was safe, structured, and time-limited—there was no lingering vulnerability once the conversation ended.
The Discovery: A Purpose-Driven Sales Network
The bakery owner assumed his distributors were motivated by money. Oscar found something far richer. These women were selling bread not just for income, but because they:
- Had personal or family health concerns
- Wanted to support and uplift their communities
- Believed deeply in natural, preservative-free foods
- Had stories that connected them emotionally to the product
They weren’t just pushing a product—they were sharing a solution and part of their own identities. They were savvy, too, introducing the bread at workplaces, gyms, and local events. Tasting led to trust—and more sales.
This was no “features and benefits” transaction. This bread was an experience—one that resonated with values and stories.
Five Key Ingredients for Scalable Growth
Oscar translated these insights into actionable steps. He identified five elements that would determine whether the bakery’s model could truly scale:
- Shared values and philosophy: The top distributors believed in a mission: boosting health and helping people, not just selling bread.
- Time and logistics: Without preservatives and in a hot climate, bread spoiled quickly. Delivery schedules and pickups became hidden bottlenecks.
- Packaging matters: Flimsy boxes led to crushed loaves—hurting both trust and credibility.
- Social selling support: Distributors used WhatsApp and Facebook, but needed better tools and content. The company needed to provide easily shareable visuals and educational materials.
- Customer experience and sampling: People didn’t buy from a description—they bought after tasting. Real-life sampling was the engine of growth.
What I love here is that Oscar didn’t need a formal operations report to uncover these constraints. He surfaced them by deeply listening to lived experience—by drawing out stories.
Bigger Than Bread: How Meaning Moves Markets
One of the most profound insights was symbolic. Sourdough isn’t “traditional Mexican bread.” Yet, through the personal stories of these women, it became a bridge: a way to enjoy bread as part of daily life, to choose health without abandoning cultural identity, and to stay connected to tradition while eating differently. That’s not just good marketing—it’s anthropology in action.
Lessons for Leaders Everywhere
Oscar summed it up beautifully: Success often hides in plain sight, in details we overlook. Anthropology equips leaders and companies to see what’s invisible and hear what’s unsaid. True innovation doesn’t always mean inventing something totally new—it often means listening to what your customers are already telling you.
So here’s my bottom line: If you’re chasing growth, don’t just ask, “How do we sell more?” Instead, ask, “What’s actually happening in the lives of the people we want to serve that we haven’t noticed yet?” When you listen for those answers, real transformation can begin.
Connect with Oscar Barrera, PhD
If you’d like to connect with Oscar, you can find him on LinkedIn,
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