Andres Ocampo
Director of Operations
HLB Specialties
Andres was born in Bogotá, Colombia in 1975. He graduated in architecture at Universidad de los Andes in 1999. That same year he migrated to the US where he worked with his family business as a customs broker for the next 4 years. While there, he pursued an MBA with emphasis in International Business at Florida International University, graduating in 2003. That same year he changed career paths and joined HLB Specialties, who are importers and distributors of fresh fruits and clients of his previous position as customs broker.
For the past 14 years, he has worked at HLB Specialties through different roles in the family owned business and for the past 5 years, acting as its Director of Operations.
There he’s responsible for the financial aspects of the company as well as for developing and maintaining grower relationships throughout Latin America. While at this role, he has had the opportunity to travel to several countries in the region, visiting farms and participating in multiples events organized by the local governments to attract foreign buyers that would be interested in bringing fresh fruits and products to the North American and European markets.
Under Mr. Ocampo’s guidance, HLB Specialties has grown to be a top player in the tropical fruit importing business, specializing in papayas and rambutan and supplying most top retailers and wholesalers in the US and Canada. Due to the nature of the business, Mr. Ocampo is very involved with the logistical challenges and searching for opportunities and products that will satisfy the needs of the North American market. By matching those needs with the realities and opportunities of the agricultural sector of the hemisphere, he developed a unique perspective of the food chain as a whole.