The history of Grupo Salinas has undoubtedly been influenced by the tenacity, determination and passion that has flowed through generations of Salinas business leaders.
Ricardo Benjamin Salinas Pliego (RBS) is an heir to this tradition, which he learned early in life: "I was thrown into the world of business at a tender age, I was about 8 or 9 years old. One day we were at home, and a swarm of bees came by in the afternoon and settled on a tree. My Uncle Guillermo took a cardboard box, caught the bees, and then bought a hive box. Soon we had a honeycomb, which provided honey, and then there were several of them. He said, ‘well, what are we to do with so much honey? We have to sell it.' So I walked through the neighborhood with my cart, selling honey. My father made me some business cards 'Pure honey for sale' and put my picture on it. I was very embarrassed at first, but I think it was a very formative experience, because ultimately you have to leave the nest, but it was an important effort. It is an experience that I have deeply imbedded in my mind; later the other adventures were more of the same: you have to get out there with an idea and persist; some will work out and others will not. Some will fall by the wayside, and others will succeed ..."
Ricardo Benjamín Salinas Pliego is a CPA with a degree from the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM). After completing an MBA program at Tulane University, he joined the ranks of Elektra in 1981 as import manager. He learned the business at a time when the company was in dire financial straits due to the successive devaluations of the 1980s. Before taking over the family business in 1987, Ricardo Salinas tried his luck in other businesses, opening a restaurant in the city of Monterrey, installing satellite dishes on his own, and even selling multi-line communication systems through his own company.