Noe Ruedas
Head of Tax and Finance
CEO and founder of LUKRUM HUB, Inc. Accountant with a master’s degree in Taxation and Doctorate studies in Business Sciences. Founding partner of RO & Associates.
Qualified professional with more than 15 years of experience in Accounting, International Taxes and Finance.
His experience as an advisor and consultant has allowed him to develop a profile as a connoisseur of aspects of international taxation, tax planning and compliance with international tax regulations in the United States. As well in the strategic planning of merger and harmonization of work teams for the optimization of resources.
He has worked in the United States for Schlumberger, a world leader in Oil Field services, in the international tax segment and financial analysis. What has given him the necessary experience to design planning strategies in the integration of work teams and segregation of duties.
Lecturer on issues of tax treatment and impact of new legislation on the international tax system, Cash flow management for business and individual budget. Investment Tax Benefit, International Tax Compliance for foreign companies in the USA, among other topics.
Rosendo Villarreal
Head of Logistics & Transportation
Rosendo Villarreal is the Co-founder of LUKRUM HUB. He has over 25 years’ experience in International commerce and trade; he is a cross cultural and business-oriented individual with field experience in more than 20 countries worldwide; more specifically doing business between Mexico, USA, and Brazil. As Partner and VP of Sales and Marketing for Source Logistics, he is in charge for the design and management of the company’s corporate sales budget and marketing strategies. Source Logistics is an innovative company offering its customers scalable and integral logistics solutions (inventory control, warehousing, fulfillment, e-commerce management, value added services and transportation). Previously as a business executive he was responsible of boosting the company’s international sales revenue to the United States over 300%, implementing new and revolutionary business strategies and models with significant successes.
Finally, as a Business Development Director he had the responsibility of designing, coordinating, and managing the company’s new operations in Brazil. Rosendo has a bachelor’s degree in business administration with and specialty in International Business from the University of Monterrey (UdeM), Mexico; he also earned a master’s degree (GMBA) from the Thunderbird School of Global Management in Phoenix, AZ. He is a native of Monterrey, Mexico, married and is fluent in Spanish, English and Portuguese. Specialties: * Business Development, * International Sales, * Exports & Imports, * Supply Chain, * Logistics, * Snacks Products & Equipment.
Juan Carlos Angarita
Head of Risk Management & Compliance
Juan Carlos Angarita Castellanos, petroleum engineer, master’s degree in informatics and computer science, doctoral student in economics and finance, doctorate studies in engineering – emphasis in risks and process safety, post-graduate specialist in systems auditing, in geographic information systems and remote sensors and in development on platforms mobiles.
Lead auditor (LA) information security management systems ISO/IEC 27001, LA business continuity management systems ISO 22301, LA service management systems ISO 20000-1, LA information & IT assets management systems ISO/IEC 19770 series, LA quality management systems ISO 9001, LA Oil, gas & petrochemical industry quality management systems ISO/TS 29001, LA occupational health & safety management systems ISO 45001, LA environmental management systems ISO 14001, LA energy management systems ISO 50001, LA critical infrastructure information processing & datacenter TIA-942-B, energy efficiency evaluator data for processing/storage centers, LA certification of people management systems ISO 17024, LA inspection bodies management systems ISO 17020, LA testing and calibration laboratory management systems ISO 17025 and VIM Guide 99, LA HSE NORSOK S-006 evaluation, RUC Auditor, LA supply chain ISO 28000, AL quality of equipment & devices medical ISO 13485, AL innovation (R&D+i) UNE 166002, AL anti-corruption / anti-bribery management systems ISO 37001, Functional safety certified engineer (advanced risks) IEC 61511, COSO III internal control manager, ISO 21500 project leader, Prince2 practitioner, Lead Cybersecurity Manager ISO/IEC 27032:2012 / NIST CS; Lead manager Industrial automation and control systems IEC 62443 Series; Advanced Risk Manager ISO 31000: 2018 – ISO 31010 – ISO 12100, Fire safety engineer ISO 1673X – 2467X – 19706; Advanced industrial security & cybersecurity manager ISA / TR 99, NIST SP-800 (Guides 30,37,39,55,53,61,184); Process Safety ISO 10418:2019 & OSHA; Lead manager for metrology (validation, method confirmation, error / uncertainty, assurance & control) ISO/IEC 17043, Lead manager on IT governance, data and information security ISO 38500 series. Diplomas in knowledge management, intellectual property (WIPO). Third Party (Certification) Auditor (LL-C); Evaluator and technical expert ISO 17021, ISO/IEC 27006, ISO/IEC 29110-4-1, and Digital certification (ONAC); Author of several technical standards; 25+ years of consulting, training and auditing experience in risk management, industrial process optimization, business continuity, energy efficiency, asset management, projects, information security and cybersecurity in information infrastructure and critical infrastructure (industrial).
Dr. Danny Salinas
Head of Transfer Pricing
Dr. Salinas has over 17 years of experience in economic consulting and transfer pricing.
His experience includes Transfer pricing advisor of the Corporate of an NBA team. Transfer pricing audit defense with Canada (CRA).
Transfer pricing studies in the US, Canada, Mexico, UK, Middle East, Australia, and Europe. Defense of an IRS transfer pricing audit of a Sweden company. Transfer pricing studies of Power companies. Transfer pricing auditor of a software company. Transfer pricing studies for Mexican companies in the US. Economic valuation of a software in the Power industry. Discount lack of marketability (DLOM) valuation. PwC Los Angeles, PwC Mexico City, PwC Houston, KPMG Houston. Dr. Salinas worked as a Director and Senior Economist in the Economic and Valuation Services Practice at KPMG and in the Transfer Pricing Practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Dr. Salinas has publications on transfer pricing and economics and holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California and a B.A. in Economics from ITESM in Mexico City. Dr. Salinas is often invited to conferences as a speaker.
Marilu Ballina
Business Planning Specialist
Marilu has 25 years of business management experience. She is fully bilingual and bicultural, having lived in Mexico and the United States. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Texas A&M University, and she earned her Master of International Management from Thunderbird in Glendale, Arizona. Marilu worked for Goldman Sachs & Co both in NYC as well as in Mexico City just when NAFTA was coming online and a great deal of excitement for Latin America’s opening up to the world was taking place. In fact, she was lucky enough to be part of the team that established GS Casa de Bolsa when foreign banks were starting operations in Mexico. After her tenure in the corporate world, Marilu decided to take the plunge, along with Axel Krayer, becoming an entrepreneur, establishing Krayer Global Inc, a business consulting firm, in 2000, 1to1printers LLC in 2001, and Whatapix in 2010. In addition to her professional career, Marilu has always been passionate of community work having volunteered in numerous non-for-profit organizations such as the Red Cross (Phoenix), Junior Achievement (both in Mexico and the USA), Destination Imagination, Association Amiga, and Live It Out.
At 1to1printers, Marilu loves helping customers find the right balance between efficiency, costs, and impact of every single printed marketing and communications project. She is also in charge of the “behind the scenes” smooth operation of the company from accounting and financial planning, HR & payroll, to accounts payable and collections. At Krayer Global, Marilu, along with a team of professionals, plans and implements the strategy to establish companies in Texas owned by foreign investors. She drafts their business plans, helps her clients obtain the necessary licenses and permits by serving as a bridge between them and local experts in the industry, among many other consulting tasks.
Fernando Ceballos Meza
Head of IT & Cybersecurity
Economista (1999) de la Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) de Ecuador, MBA de FGV Brasil.
Economist (1999) from the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) of Ecuador, MBA from FGV Brazil. International consultant with more than 22 years of experience. Internationally certified expert in Compliance Management Systems, Anti-Bribery, Artificial Intelligence, Leadership and Examiner Frauds. International professor and co-founder of the Ethics and Compliance Graduation Programs at the USP / FIA (Brazil) and at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Studies (TEC de Monterrey). Professor at the International Anticorruption Academy (IACA), Professor at the Catholic University of Buenos Aires (UCA), Professor at the Universidad Pan Americana (UP), Professor at the Leoron Institute (Middle East). President and co-founder of the Mexican Association of Ethics and Compliance Professionals – AMPEC. Member of the International Technical Group of ISO 37301.
Global Coordinator of the ISO 37001 communication. Founder and CEO of F&C Consulting Group (2016) focused on raising the culture of integrity in people to transform the corporate world and countries through Forensic Investigation, Risk Management and Compliance.
Felipe Suarez
Head of Merge & Acquisition
Business owners sometimes need assistance from outside their company when they need new sources of funding, want help generating additional cash flow or are going through a merger or acquisition. Felipe has over 30 years of financial, operational, and transactional experience across a broad range of domestic and international companies. Also, Felipe is a performance-oriented and strategic thinker with a strong sense of urgency. His career begun with Arthur Andersen and later EY. Have served in a variety of industries including manufacturing, construction, distribution, pharmaceutical, medical devices, upstream and oilfield services. Felipe has work with teams of cross-functional professionals in several locations, in the implementation of effective operational strategies.
Have extensive experience with: * Sale and acquisitions of companies, startups, turnarounds, integrations, and bankruptcies, * Implementation and operational control of companies and operations, * Improving cash flow, * Bank relations, * Strategic planning, * Budgeting, * Financial reporting, * Financial administration, * Establishing and implementing processes and procedures. * Building company culture, * Lease transactions, * Human Resources. Felipe grew up in Venezuela and have been expat to Latin America, Southeast Asia and Canada on several occasions. Live in Houston and has 4 children and enjoy travelling with his wife Paulina. Also, have a Shodan rank in karate Kyokushin and Nidan rank in Judo. Have participated on several Karate World Championships; and Judo tournaments in Latin America, and now play golf. He is fluent in English, Spanish and conversational in Portuguese.
Ivan Ramirez
Attorney and Counselor at Law
Head of Legal
CEO & Founder of LAW OFFICE OF IVAN RAMIREZ & ASSOCIATES. LANGUAGES: English, Spanish. PRACTICE AREAS: International & Domestic Estate, Business and Tax Planning, Non-Resident Estate and Gift Tax Planning, Estate Administration and Probate, Asset Protection Planning, Charitable Tax Planning. EDUCATION: St. Mary’s University School of Law, Juris Doctor, Texas A&M International University, Master of Science, The University of Texas at Austin, Bachelor of Arts. BAR ADMISSIONS: Texas United States District Court, Western District of Texas, United States District Court, Southern District of Texas.
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS: San Antonio Bar Association-International Law Section, Past Chair 2018 – 2019. Phi Delta Phi Legal Honor Society Mexican American Bar Association Wealth Counsel. PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Law Office of Iván Ramírez & Associates- Managing Partner, 2019 – Present. Ramirez & Parenti, PLLC- Managing Partner, 2011 – Present. Ramirez, Marrou & Martinez de Vara, PLLC- Attorney/Partner, 2007 – 2010, Intern, US District Court, Hon. X. Rodriguez, 2006. COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT & AWARDS: San Antonio Scene, 2014, 2020 and 2021 Best Lawyer Award- Estate Planning & Trusts, Texas Super Lawyers Magazine, 2014 – 2017 “Rising Star”- Estate Planning. CONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION (CLE) PRESENTATIONS: San Antonio Black Lawyers Association: Texas Business Entity Legislative Update, 2011. Trust Based Estate Planning, 2012. Laredo-Webb County Bar Association: Federal Estate and Gift Tax Updates, 2013. Mexican American Bar Association (San Antonio Chapter): Trust Based Estate Planning, 2013. Asset Protection Planning, 2015. Texas Forum of Wealth counsel: Gift & Estate Tax Planning for Non-Residents, 2013, Asset Protection Planning, 2020, The Hispanic Issues Section of the State Bar of Texas: Estate Planning 101: Wills VS. Trusts, 2015. Tax Section of the State Bar of Texas: Avoiding Unintended Estate Planning, 2015. San Antonio Bar Association-Family Law Section: Asset Protection Planning, 2016. San Antonio Bar Association-Family Law Section: Intersection of Family Law & Estate Planning, 2017. San Antonio Bar Association-International Law Section: Estate & Tax Planning for International Clients, 2017. Asset Protection Planning, 2018. San Antonio CPA Society-CE: Estate & Tax Planning for International Clients, 2018. Texas Society of CPA’S-Austin Chapter: Estate & Tax Planning for International Clients, 2018. Society of Financial Service Professionals Houston-CE: Estate and Tax Planning for International Clients with US Assets: Pitfalls for the Unwary, 2018. Texas Society of CPA’s – Houston (CPE): Estate and Gift Tax Planning for Non-US Residents: Maneuvering Across the Minefield, 2019. International Estate and Gift Tax Planning: Avoiding the Ticking Time-Bomb, 2020. So, Your Client Has a Trust, Now What? Trust Federal Income Taxation, 2021. National Association of Insurance & Financial Advisors- San Antonio: The Importance of Estate and Tax Planning for International Clients, 2019.
Miguel Villarreal, Jr.
Head of Intellectual Property. Registered Patent Attorney.
Miguel Villarreal, Jr. is a registered patent attorney specializing in all aspects of intellectual property, with an emphasis on litigation, primarily patent, trademark, and copyright infringement actions. His practice also includes counseling clients in the areas of unfair competition, trade secrets, and licensing matters. Mr. Villarreal also prosecutes patent and trademark applications and handles various trademark proceedings before the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Mr. Villarreal is fluent in Spanish. As one of the only Spanish-speaking patent attorneys in the San Antonio area, Mr. Villarreal is uniquely qualified to and counsels and advises international clients from several Spanish speaking countries, including Mexico and Central and South America, on a variety of intellectual property matters.
Mr. Villarreal is a skilled litigator whose litigation practice includes both state and federal practice. Mr. Villarreal represents clients as either plaintiffs or defendants in state and federal courts, primarily on intellectual property actions, such as complex patent infringement in areas such as dental radiography and software, trademark infringement and unfair competition actions, copyright infringement actions, and misappropriation of trade secret cases, and in commercial business litigation and breach of contract claims. Mr. Villarreal also represents clients before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. In 2009, Mr. Villarreal tried a state action to a jury and received a favorable verdict. Mr. Villarreal also has extensive experience representing clients in administrative proceedings, including opposition and cancellation proceedings, before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) on trademark related matters. Mr. Villarreal also assists his clients in obtaining protection of their intellectual property, including patent and trademark protection, both in the U.S. and in foreign countries. Mr. Villarreal’s experience also includes patent searches and drafting and prosecuting patent applications concentrating in the areas of chemical and mechanical arts. His practice also includes developing intellectual property portfolios for start-up businesses, including conducting trademark clearance searches, and providing opinions on the availability and registrability of a potential mark. His practice also includes maintaining and expanding the intellectual property portfolios of his clients, including drafting, and negotiating complex license agreements, assignments, and confidentiality agreements. Prior to joining Gunn, Lee & Cave, P.C., Mr. Villarreal practiced commercial law and business litigation in South Texas. Prior to practicing law, Mr. Villarreal was a chemist working in the private sector where he researched environmental rules and regulations for method development and consulted clients on environmental issues. As a chemist, he worked and became intimately familiar with regulatory methodology and sophisticated instrumentation in areas such as mass spectrometry (MS), gas chromatography (GC), gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), ion chromatography (IC), infrared (IR) spectroscopy, and ultraviolet/visible spectroscopy (UV/VIS) in his search for environmental contaminants such as hydrocarbons, fuels, pesticides, and other organic and inorganic contaminants of drinking water, wastewater, and soil. Schooled in chemistry and experienced as an accomplished chemist, Mr. Villarreal brings to the firm his honed analytical and problem-solving skills. Mr. Villarreal earned his law degree from St. Mary’s University School of Law and his undergraduate degree from Baylor University. He is a frequent speaker on intellectual property issues, including patent litigation, and is frequently invited to give presentations at various organizations. Mr. Villarreal is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the State of Texas, the U.S. District Court for the Northern, Eastern, Southern and Western Districts of Texas, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Kalani Hawks Villafranca
Head of Legal Immigration Services
Austin Immigration Attorney Kalani Hawks Villafranca practices U.S. immigration law because she believes everyone deserves to feel like they belong in their home and with their families. She loves helping her clients live the life they want to live, wherever they want to live, with the people who matter most to them. Attorney Kalani has over a decade of experience as an attorney and for several years was the managing attorney for the Texas Here to Stay/Texas No Nos Vamos coalition. She helped bring free legal clinics to communities throughout Texas and provided guidance to thousands of immigrants seeking to obtain or renew their DACA status or become U.S. citizens. Before founding Hawks Villafranca Law, Attorney Kalani worked as a Senior Immigration Attorney for the Equal Justice Center in Austin, TX where she helped hundreds of people get the work permits, they needed to support themselves and their families. Attorney Kalani Hawks Villafranca has been regularly featured on Univision speaking about DACA, citizenship, and other immigration topics that matter to you and your family. She is also a trusted partner for the Consulado General de México en Austin and works closely with the Consulado to provide immigration law services to the Mexican community.
She is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Attorney Kalani Hawks Villafranca is bilingual in Spanish and English and has lived and worked in cities across the globe including New York, Mexico City, and Madrid. She now lives in Austin with her husband, David, and their three sons.
Jose Morales. Eng.
Head of International Transportation
Jose Morales is Engineer, Co-founder, and CEO of one of the most important company of logistic and transportation in Houston, Texas. The company has presence in 72 countries, providing collaborative logistic and cargo specialist solutions.
With extensive experience in the Europe, Asia, and Latin America. As strategic partner of LUKRUM HUB, his company works in a closely relation with our clients, allowing to expand and manage commercial operations to and from US to the rest of the world.
Maria Alejandra Ruedas
Real Estate Agent of Martha Turner Sotheby’s International Realty
Maria Ruedas has flourished in her real estate career by giving her best and constantly delivering results beyond her client’s expectations. “There is not a right way to do something wrong,” is her guiding philosophy; her hands-on approach during each step of a real estate transaction, allows her to easily navigate her buyers and sellers from contract to closing.
In the buying process she guides her clients to an informed decision by determining their true purchasing ability, so they can be comfortable with the price range they have chosen. When selling a home for her clients, she presents a detailed comparable market study informing them of the fair market value of their home and managing their expectations of what to expect when an offer is received on the property. Her commitment to obtaining the highest price possible for her clients, Maria develops a plan for staging, cleaning, and organizing in order to present the home in its best possible light. Proud to be associated with the Sotheby’s brand, she makes use of social media and the latest technology available through Martha Turner Sotheby’s International Realty. A consummate professional, Maria has a keen eye for detail and is expertly prepared to assist her clients. She stays abreast of current market trends and if needed, provides additional information to ensure the sale of a home. Representative of her sterling reputation, 95% of Maria’s clientele are referrals.
Maria has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in project management from DeVry University. She has also achieved the designation of (ABR) Accredited Buyer Representation. When time allows, she volunteers for the Latin Ladies Foundation and Wellness for Growth Foundation.
Ludy Serio
Real Estate Investment Professional
Buying and owning real estate is an investment strategy that can be both satisfying and lucrative. Unlike stock and bond investors, prospective real estate owners can use leverage to buy a property by paying a portion of the total cost upfront, then paying off the balance, plus interest, over time. While a traditional mortgage generally requires a 20% to 25% down payment, in some cases a 5% down payment is all it takes to purchase an entire property. This ability to control the asset the moment papers are signed emboldens both real estate flippers and landlords, who can, in turn, take out second mortgages on their homes in order to make down payments on additional properties. Here are five keyways’ investors can make money on real estate.
Ludy has the expertise to guide her clients into an experience of quality service and professionalism, with guarantee of best investment project in the market of Florida, USA. She is an example of hard work and effective results.
Luis Roc
Digital Marketing and SEO Consultant
Head of Marketing
Luis is experienced professional of marketing, with expertise in the following areas:
• Increased annual gross sales by 15%. • Developed direct mass mailings which resulted in 8% growth of customer base.
• Research and Analysis. • Branding. • Designed and executed branding plan to rename and re-brand a different business unit. • Conducted studies to create messaging strategy. • Supervised creation of marketing strategies/plans and ensured operations were within budget constraints. • Marketing Consulting. • Advised and assisted major computer companies, small businesses and non-profit organizations in business startup, business plans, marketing, public relations, and communications with a 95% success rate. • Worked with customers to define and develop business cases for new products.
• Wrote marketing requirements documents for future product development. Product Development. •Led team of 6 direct reports to determine packaging, positioning, pricing, advertising, sales forecasts and promotional aspects for successful new product launch. Market Research, •Defined industry segments and identified opportunities in domestic and international markets. SEO Strategy Implementation. •Increased sales by 30% and web traffic to over 8K unique daily visitors, attaining a top 100K Alexa Internet Ranking. Organizational Development. •Implemented strategy targeting high-profile clientele. •Replaced industry leader within 9 months of product launch. Consumer Research. SEO/SEM Strategies
•Increased website traffic by 60% to over 50K monthly views through effective meta-tagging, blogging and search engine submissions. Online Media Buying. •Managed team of three marketing associates in all online media buying. •Bought banner placement that profitably increased traffic to company website by 25%. Account Management. •Managed over 70 large accounts for advertising agencies and brand advertisers. •Successfully grew advertiser budgets by 100% and advertiser spending by 150% in 1.5 years.
Leopoldo Franco
Sales & Brokerage Manager
Leopoldo is an expert on Sales & Marketing, Food Products Development, Business Development, Market analysis, Business Coach, Entrepreneur, Writer.
To sale anything, requires a Vision and a Plan Preparation and a very good view of Your Market! Relationships are great, it is a step within the Business, but that is not determine your success to sale volumes, Strategy, price program and a marketing behind a great Product, with good quality, that’s only the first step, it has to have a great package, product identity, product with a package innovation that invite the consumer, 5 points to success to Build a Brand Leader: * Quality. * Package second to none. * Product Identity (Name). * Market Identification (Know your Market). *Marketing Programs (Strategy to Build around the Product) and programs that make sense to your Buyers and Customers! Covering every detail in every area to build a Brand.
Lourdes Villarreal
Business Development México
Lourdes has a degree in International Studies from the University of Monterrey UDEM, she has developed professionally in Public Relations, Relocation, Sales, and Investments in the Real Estate sector. She is a founding partner of Remax Capital in the city of Querétaro, Mexico.
Her mission is to help and accompany each of her clients to find the best option in buying or selling a property.
Ricardo Peralta
Insurance Property & Casualty
Ricardo help customers like you identify the insurance coverage that best fits your needs.
This process is straightforward and personalized to help make you smarter about insurance. He has the knowledge and experience to help you better understand your coverage options–whether that’s auto, home, renters, business insurance and more.