Turning Your Passion into a Business: Three Student Entrepreneurship Stories at Sagrado

By Institutional Communications

This semester, the university community celebrated the largest edition of Showcase@Sagrado to date, with more than 180 students showcasing their entrepreneurial projects. Since its first edition in 2022, which featured 16 participants, the initiative has grown alongside the university’s entrepreneurial community. This year’s event also held special significance as it coincided with the 10th anniversary of the Center for Collaborative Innovation–Neeuko (Neeuko).

Each project begins with a passion that evolves into an idea and, through research and validation, becomes a solution for its target market. Meet some of the ventures that are part of Sagrado’s entrepreneurial ecosystem!

C. Kicks: Turning a Passion for Sneakers into a Movement

Caleb Portalatín Fuentes has always been passionate about sneakers, inspiring him to explore business opportunities from an early age. In 2019, he began cleaning, restoring, and reselling used shoes, which led to the creation of C. Kicks.

Rather than simply selling footwear, Portalatín Fuentes wanted to stand out in Puerto Rico’s resale market. He chose to create valuable content about sneaker cleaning and styling. One of his first videos surpassed one million views in less than 24 hours. Today, C. Kicks has nearly 1.9 million followers across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

One of the biggest challenges he faced when starting his business was the lack of guidance in the business world, as he is the first person in his family to pursue entrepreneurship. That changed in 2023, when he enrolled at Sagrado to resume his university studies.

“When I arrived here, I already had a strong foundation for my business, but there were many things I still needed to refine, and the university gave me those tools,” said Portalatín Fuentes. Among the university’s support resources, he highlighted the entrepreneurship HUBS and La Cepita, an immersive accelerator program that helps student entrepreneurs develop products and services. He won the program’s most recent edition, held in summer 2026, receiving more than $2,000 to support his business.

This year, C. Kicks participated in Sneaker Con for the first time, an international event that brings together shoe and streetwear buyers, sellers, and collectors. Today, sneaker enthusiasts can find C. Kicks at Plaza Las Américas and through its digital platforms.

Sentinel Rush: A Project Inspired by Video Games and the Desire to Bring People Together

A passion for video games, graphic design, and creating competitive experiences inspired Sebastián Fernández Serrano to develop Sentinel Rush, a strategic card game influenced by games such as Pokémon and anime.

Designed for two players, the game challenges participants to build teams of combat robots, known as “Sentinels,” and their pilots. Players use cards and dice to attack, switch robots, and activate special effects. Fernández Serrano, a fourth-year student in the Graphic Design program at the School of Arts, Design and Creative Industries, explained that the idea for Sentinel Rush emerged during a student exchange at the University of Design, Innovation and Technology (UDIT) in Madrid, Spain, where he studied video game design.

“During my stay, I often visited board game and card game stores and took part in game nights. I’ve always been passionate about video games and their development, but what particularly drew me to board games was their social aspect: bringing people together face-to-face to share, laugh, and enjoy an experience. That connection means a great deal to me and inspired me to create my own game,” he explained.

While at Sagrado, he continued developing his idea through entrepreneurship courses and received university support in business planning and development.

“Neeuko was a great help throughout the project’s development. Before I had a professionally manufactured prototype, I used its printing resources to produce cards on cardstock and create test versions of the game. This allowed me to conduct multiple playtests and improve the product before investing in manufacturing,” he said.

Fernández Serrano continues to showcase his project at events such as Showcase@Sagrado and plans to present it at Comic-Con Puerto Rico 2027. In the long term, he hopes to develop more games and establish his own game studio, Too Many Jobs.

Those interested in purchasing a copy can place a preorder through the link on the business’s Instagram account: @sentinelrush.

Eco Nova: Accessories Given New Life Through Recycling

Eco Nova is a brand that creates handmade accessories using recycled materials. The idea emerged during the pandemic, when Delianis Bruno began making handbags out of paper. After enrolling at Sagrado in 2023, her professors recognized the potential of her project and helped her formalize the business and expand its offerings to include jewelry made from recycled plastic.

With her family’s support, Bruno collects materials that might otherwise be discarded. This process inspired her to promote environmental awareness through her business.

During her time at the university, she received guidance through her entrepreneurship courses and from professors who connected her with the Neeuko team. She also won the 2025 edition of La Cepita, receiving an award that helped cover the costs of establishing a retail space and workshop.

Today, Eco Nova sells its products at markets and through custom orders while developing its website with Neeuko’s support. Looking ahead, Bruno hopes to establish the brand as a leader in sustainability and recycling in Puerto Rico.

These three ventures represent just a few of the businesses students begin developing, sometimes even before arriving at Sagrado, and continue to strengthen through the training offered by the university’s Entrepreneurship component. This ecosystem includes the entrepreneurship HUBS, La Cepita, and Tasty Lab, all housed within the Center for Collaborative Innovation–Neeuko, which provides mentorship, access to seed funding, and strategic support to help turn ideas into tangible ventures.

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