SANTO DOMINGO – After more than a decade within the same professional structure in Colombia, Giovanni Arenas Mejía began to feel burned out. His responsibilities were growing, and his career seemed to be progressing in the right direction. However, something no longer felt right.
It wasn't a sudden crisis. Nor was it an impulsive decision. It was a feeling that gradually settled in until it became a certainty: I needed a change in my life.
In early 2023, she resigned from the job she had held for over 10 years. For a few months, she collaborated with her city government while trying to answer a question that was becoming increasingly pressing: what did she want for the next stage of her life?.
The answer came from a place he had never visited. Grupo Noval offered him a professional opportunity in the Dominican Republic. He accepted without ever having set foot in the land of Merengue.
Until then, Punta Cana was just one of those names that any Latin American heard associated with tourism and the beaches of the Caribbean.
In August of that year, he landed on Dominican soil with a suitcase, a job opportunity, and the feeling of starting over.
“I didn’t really know what I was getting into,” he recalls.
Far from home
The first few months were marked by the adjustment period that comes with being in a new place, far from home. He arrived alone. His wife and son stayed in Colombia while he tried to establish a routine in an unfamiliar environment. The real challenge was emotional.
His priority was to bring his family over. He accomplished that three months later. From that moment on, his experience of living in the Dominican Republic began to transform.
Although he misses his parents, siblings, and relatives in his native country, he has found a peace he had been seeking for a long time with his wife and son. “I think I’m happy here,” he says.
Because when he talks about the country, he's not just referring to the place where he works. He's talking about the space that allowed him to escape the noise he felt in his previous life and focus on what he truly wants to build.
“Not because I want to detach myself from my roots. I miss my country, but here I can concentrate on what I truly want to achieve as a person and as a professional.”.
His encounter with finance
A civil engineer by profession, Giovanni built much of his career working on projects, budgets, and construction sites. Over the years, he discovered that his interest was shifting toward finance. That process continued in the Dominican Republic.
He joined Grupo Noval as a project director and later took on new challenges related to the company's financial planning. He developed internal processes and grew with the organization until becoming chief financial officer.
He prefers to define himself as a person in constant training.
From his experience in the real estate sector, he observes with interest the rapid development of Punta Cana and Bávaro. He recognizes the challenges that accompany the growth of any tourist destination: infrastructure, public services, and urban planning.
But when he thinks about his own story, the reflection is simpler.
Just a few years ago, she was searching for a way out. Today, she feels she has found her path. She doesn't know exactly where she'll be in five years. What she does know is that the most important project of her life is still underway. And, for now, she affirms that "everything I have, everything I love, and everything I want to do is here in the Dominican Republic.".
Content originally published in issue 15 of El Inmobiliario print edition.
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