CIMBRA Inc.

Owning and operating a business is challenging. Doing so as someone who is underrepresented in business as well as their own industry ads even more hoops to jump through. For Miriam Rodriguez though, the challenges are worth struggling through to live everyday doing the work she loves.

Miriam is the owner of CIMBRA Inc, a Brighton-based construction business offering landscaping, environmental services, and land reclamation services. She will be coming up on her 5-year mark in business this summer and has made use of the SBDC consulting services and programming for the last several years. Miriam is a recent graduate of the Leading Edge program through the North Metro SBDC, where she was enthusiastically engaged each week and capitalized on the new information to take her business to the next level.

Through the help of the SBDC and connections made during the course, Miriam received her certifications as a Minority/Woman-owned Business Enterprise, Small Business Enterprise, Disadvantaged Business Enterprise, and Emerging Business Enterprise in October of 2023. Feeling equipped with the necessary information and resources, Miriam states, “I feel happy and I feel like finally I am getting to where I wanted to be.”

Miriam expressed the difficulties of being a female leader in the construction industry. Despite being extremely qualified, she is often overlooked due to longstanding discrimination in the industry. However, feeling equipped by all she has learned in the Leading Edge course, coupled with the weekly dose of encouragement, Miriam has a renewed outlook on the industry that she loves and is willing to work through the discrimination to live out her passion. Fueled by a new sense of confidence, Miriam says, “Information is power.”

Since completing the Leading Edge course, Miriam has continued to meet with SBDC consultants and has been collaborating with counselors through CDOT as well as the MBO office. The SBDC is proud to support the journey of businesses like CIMBRA Inc. and celebrates the success Miriam has already realized as well as the new opportunities coming her way in the future.

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