Breaking the Textbook Monopoly with Luca: Frederico Bello’s Mission to Redefine K-12 Education for Latin America

Hi, Frederico, thank you so much for accepting the invitation to be part of the EdTech Mentor series. It’s a pleasure to have you here. Let’s start with a bit about you—can you tell us about your journey into EdTech and the company you currently lead?

Thank you for having me, Laureano. It’s a pleasure to be here. Let me share a bit about myself. I’m the founder of Luca, and I’m originally from Portugal. I left my country during my studies, after completing the first part of my degree. I don’t come from an educational background. My career started in investment banking at Morgan Stanley, where I worked in M&A in London. It had little to do with EdTech, although I covered some education companies. My role was fairly agnostic in terms of industries; we focused on advising companies on sales and acquisitions in the tech space across Europe.

Over time, I realized I didn’t want to climb the traditional corporate ladder in finance. I became increasingly interested in the tech world and gained experience in startups. I worked at Uber in Europe, launching new cities, and also co-founded an electric scooter business in Portugal and Spain. When that company was acquired, I saw an opportunity to explore a new sector.

Two things led me to found an education company. First, I realized I enjoyed working on early-stage projects, even if they weren’t my own. This pointed me toward eventually starting my own business. Second, I wanted my work to have a tangible impact. While I never lacked motivation in banking or startups, I began to understand the importance of mission-driven work. So, when I had the chance to pivot, I chose education.

I later led the international expansion of a Spanish EdTech company called Power MBA, which offered a $1,500 online MBA as an alternative to traditional $50,000 programs. This was during COVID, and the company grew exponentially. That success triggered my decision to start Luca, which I launched about three years ago.

Did you start Luca alone, or did you have a team in mind when the idea took shape?

I’m a solo founder. I started by creating a PowerPoint presentation and convincing the first developer—since I’m not a technical founder—to build the initial version of the product with me.

At that inception stage, I assume you chose K-12 as your initial market. Why did you pick this segment, and what inspired that decision?

Great question. While leading Power MBA’s international expansion across over 20 countries—including India, Israel, and much of Europe and Latin America—I learned a lot. In India, I saw how mature the EdTech market was and noticed a strong bias toward K-12. Companies serving this sector were growing rapidly, capturing significant market share, and raising venture funding.

For example, Byju’s growth, particularly during COVID when they made their platform free, was incredible. Their user base tripled. I strongly believed K-12 would remain the most dynamic sector during and after the pandemic, and that belief became the genesis of Luca.

Looking back at your diverse career, what lessons from your past roles have been most valuable in building Luca?

Many lessons stand out. For instance, I often tell schools we work with that we aim to disrupt the industry, much like Uber did with taxis. Disruption rarely comes from within an industry, and I believe that insight is crucial. At Morgan Stanley, I gained valuable hard skills like structured thinking and multi-tasking, as we often handled five or six deals simultaneously.

In startups, I learned the importance of problem-solving. Founders frequently encounter challenges they’ve never faced before, and instead of panicking, I’ve learned to enjoy solving them. Early in Luca, for instance, our content was video-based. I had to understand video editing, motion graphics, and production. Today, most of our content is digital, but those early challenges were pivotal. Overall, structured problem-solving, multitasking, and adaptability are the most transferable skills I’ve applied to Luca.

Before we dive deeper into Luca, I’d like to touch on the current state of mergers and acquisitions in EdTech. Activity seems low, particularly in North America. How do you see this affecting your business?

It’s definitely challenging. Historically, education has been more attractive to later-stage investors, like private equity, often for consolidation plays. For example, buying a network of schools and integrating tech solutions. COVID brought extraordinary growth to EdTech, particularly in China and India. Companies like Byju’s and VIPKid reported annual growth rates and unit economics that were unprecedented in education.

However, the market cooled significantly around 2022. While recovery signs are emerging, EdTech still lags. That said, there’s a positive shift—EdTech has become a more specialized field. In the U.S., for instance, there are a few dedicated funds still investing with strong conviction. I also believe M&A remains a viable growth strategy for companies in this space.

Let’s shift to Luca. What does Luca do today, and what’s your vision for the company?

Luca is a B2B SaaS platform for schools. We provide academic content and classroom management tools. Teachers access a library covering the full official curriculum—in Mexico, our primary market—for core subjects like Math, Spanish, and English. They also have tools to track homework, evaluate performance, and identify learning gaps.

For students, we offer a gamified experience to make learning more engaging. You can think of Luca as the “textbook publisher of the future.” All our content is created with AI, which also helps teachers save time on administrative tasks like grading and exam creation. Recently, we’ve expanded into physical materials, like books and manipulative tools for math learning based on the Singapore methodology. Our hybrid approach directly competes with traditional publishers that have dominated this space for 5 to 8 decades.

Okay, so many questions to ask, but this is fascinating. So, this isn’t a complementary solution—it includes the entire curriculum framework for courses. It seems more like the challenge lies in getting schools to fully adopt your platform as the primary guide for curriculum development, assignments, and homework management. Is that correct, or how does adoption typically work in schools?

Luca is a substitute. If you look at a school’s P&L, private schools—since they’re businesses—spend the most money on materials for teachers and students. This cost is then passed on to parents as part of tuition fees. Luca integrates seamlessly into schools' learning systems. They stop using traditional textbooks and adopt our books, which are traditional in format but enhanced with our tech platform.

The highlight of our offering is the easy-to-use technological component, which delivers academic improvements of 25% to 40% compared to traditional methods. It also generates usage rates among teachers and students that are four times higher, all while being extremely cost-competitive. Since much of our product is digital, it’s significantly cheaper to produce than printing books.

But at the same time, it’s fully aligned with the country’s official curriculum, correct?

Frederico Bello
Absolutely. One of our core values as a company is strict alignment with the official curriculum. In Mexico, we follow the SEP (Secretariat of Public Education) guidelines, including the latest and somewhat controversial reform called the New Mexican School. For startups like ours, such changes present opportunities.

Can you give us an overview of the private school market in Mexico, such as its size and characteristics?

Sure. Let’s start with the bigger picture. Luca’s initial focus is on the Spanish-speaking Latin American market, the third-largest globally by number of K-12 students. India leads with about 300 million students, followed by China with 200 million, and then Spanish-speaking countries with around 120 million. For context, Nigeria has 56 million, Indonesia and Pakistan follow, and then comes the U.S.

This Spanish-speaking market is attractive for two reasons: 1) The curricula across Latin American countries are quite similar due to shared influences, like PISA standards, which are highly regarded despite the region's performance. 2) AI scalability allows us to easily localize content for new markets.

Mexico alone has about 30 million students—80% in public schools and 20% in private schools. There are roughly 20,000 private schools capable of adopting technology, measured by tuition levels. Most are primary schools, followed by secondary schools, preschools, and high schools (or preparatory schools).

Are private schools in Mexico homogeneous, or are they more polarized in terms of purchasing power or socioeconomic demographics?

The majority are mid to lower-middle tier schools, with around 5% to 10% considered high-end "triple-A" schools. These are often religious, American, or bilingual institutions. Our target market is middle-tier schools, typically with monthly tuition ranging from 1,000 to 4,000 Mexican pesos.

Excellent. What’s the biggest challenge this segment faces? You mentioned learning gaps, particularly in STEM, which is a challenge globally. What are the main gaps Luca addresses today, based on the results you’re seeing?

The first challenge is financial. Schools are often paying high prices for traditional solutions. Our offerings are about half the price of legacy players—mainly traditional book publishers. This cost reduction helps schools maintain competitiveness without raising tuition fees, which is crucial in a local business where parents typically choose schools within a 15–20 km radius of their homes.

The second challenge is stakeholder perception. Parents often feel that current solutions aren’t used effectively by teachers or students, making them question their value. Lastly, legacy publishers struggle to demonstrate measurable academic improvements. These companies, focused primarily on textbooks, have added digital platforms more out of obligation than expertise. It’s similar to the taxi industry's struggle to adapt to Uber’s tech-driven model.

Regarding those legacy publishers dominating the Mexican market, are they local or international?

They’re mostly Spanish. The two largest players are Editorial Santillana and Grupo SM. Santillana generates $700–$1,000 million annually in Latin America, with Mexico being its biggest market. There’s also Macmillan, a UK-based company strong in English-language content. English accounts for 60% of academic spending in schools, with the remaining 40% covering Spanish-language subjects like Math, Science, and Grammar. Macmillan even acquired a Mexican publisher called Castillo, further consolidating its presence.

You mentioned school P&Ls earlier. Are academic materials the largest expense, even more than infrastructure, or were you only referring to teaching and learning tools?

Yes, academic materials are the primary expense, followed by salaries, infrastructure, and utilities. Schools prioritize providing strong academic solutions because it’s their core business. They pass these costs onto parents, often with a markup.

I’m tempted to check my daughter’s school expenses now! Who is your main champion in schools during this process?

Great question. The academic team is usually our champion. The entry process varies—leads can come from teachers, school owners, federations, or even marketing events. But the first formal meeting is typically with an academic coordinator or primary director to discuss the product. Schools then review the curriculum alignment and both digital and physical experiences. The final decision-maker is the school’s administrative director, who may or may not be the owner.

Can you tell us more about the physical components, like books and gamified tools? What subjects did you start with, and how does it work?

Our ability to create content quickly and cost-effectively is one of our strengths. Most of our team are AI experts. We use existing models, custom algorithms, and legacy content to develop materials. Luca currently focuses on primary education (grades 1–6, ages 6–12). We started with Science, Spanish, and Math, later adding English, Reading, and Grammar.

For Math, we adopted the Singapore methodology, known for its hands-on approach using physical manipulatives like cubes, abacuses, and fraction circles. Each first-grader receives a kit with books and tools to complement the digital platform. We invest heavily in teacher training, offering guides, exercises, and tailored sessions to help schools implement these methodologies effectively.

Excellent. I might have already asked this, but perhaps I combined questions earlier. What is your ultimate vision for Luca?

Luca aims to become the leading educational publisher in Latin America within the next 10 years. That’s our vision, and we have significant expansion plans for the United States and Europe. In the medium term, our goal is to dominate the Latin American market. It’s a market worth over $200 billion, with many characteristics typical of industries ripe for disruption.

Education in Latin America mirrors patterns seen in fintech, healthcare, and transportation, where long-established players with little incentive to innovate dominate the market. This results in poor user experiences, dissatisfaction with customer service, and restrictive practices like long-term contracts or penalties for returning materials. These factors are starting to shift with the emergence of EdTech players, similar to how companies like Nubank in Colombia have disrupted traditional banking.

Our high NPS (Net Promoter Score) and low churn rates prove our model works. Last year, we had just 8% churn, which is vital for success given that sales cycles can be lengthy. We’ve reduced our average sales cycle to less than 60 days, which, combined with retaining customers, creates a solid foundation for internal growth and investment opportunities.

Beyond the clear value proposition you’ve described, what would you say to a school principal or owner to challenge their current way of operating or their reliance on traditional publishers? What’s Luca’s short and compelling tagline?

The ability to attract more students, provide a more affordable solution that allows investment in other areas, and make schools more competitive. Luca also empowers teachers with tools to reduce administrative tasks, letting them focus on improving academic performance. And we guarantee academic results. In short, Luca improves rankings.

Impressive. What’s the expected adoption timeline? If I were a school owner and decided to adopt Luca, how long before it’s fully implemented and running?

Within the first week of using Luca, 90% of teachers typically engage with the platform, completing at least five daily actions. Our onboarding process includes a two-hour training session, either in person or via video conference. Afterward, we provide follow-up support through WhatsApp, closely monitoring data to identify teachers or students who may need additional assistance.

We automate much of the data collection and presentation process. For example, school directors receive weekly usage reports detailing engagement across grades, classrooms, and even individual teachers. This level of transparency empowers school administrators to make informed decisions and ensures they see the platform’s value.

Absolutely, and having that level of detail in platform adoption must be ideal. It’s not just about adopting technology—it’s about embracing an innovative curriculum and teaching methodology. What partnerships or collaborations do you currently have, or which ones do you think are essential for your go-to-market strategy?

We work with distributors. Our internal salesforce generates leads through an outbound model—our team schedules meetings, and sales reps follow up either in person or via video calls. Additionally, we collaborate with third-party distributors. We’ve found that “underdogs” make excellent partners because they share our drive to disrupt and gain market share.

We also have informal partnerships with companies in adjacent sectors targeting the same customers but offering different services. These collaborations have historically been effective for us.

Clearly, you’re firmly in the teaching and learning category. But what other areas within K-12 do you see potential for growth in Latin America?

Every year, Holon IQ publishes a list of the top 100 EdTech companies in Latin America, and we’ve been featured for three consecutive years. They categorize us under tutoring and test prep, though we operate in core academic content. I see great potential in exam preparation, which is an underserved area in this region.

Unlike India or China, where students face extreme pressure to excel in exams, Latin America offers a significant but less intense opportunity. For example, Brazil’s Descomplica, backed by SoftBank, helps students prepare for university entrance exams. There’s room for similar solutions here.

We’re also incorporating teacher admin tools into Luca, such as lesson planning automation, which can reduce weekly planning time from four hours to less than one. Another promising area is project-based learning, now mandatory in Mexican schools. For instance, creating interdisciplinary projects that integrate math, science, and language often takes teachers three weeks. With Luca, teachers can generate these projects in just five minutes, saving significant time while maintaining quality.

Fascinating. You’ve mentioned AI throughout. Can you tell us more about how Luca leverages artificial intelligence?

We focus on two main areas. First, we use generative AI for content production. We rely on robust models for sound, video, and text generation. For example, most of the images in our textbooks are created using tools like DALL·E and then refined by our team. This approach allows for rapid and cost-effective standardization and customization of audiovisual and written materials.

Second, we create reactive digital experiences to solve common challenges, especially for teachers. For example, we automate grading, correction of written assignments, and even the generation of interdisciplinary projects. Recently, we introduced a conversational bot for English learning. Students can interact with an AI playing the role of a 17th-century history professor, which helps them practice listening and speaking skills without the social anxiety of speaking in front of peers. Teachers simply review the progress reports while students advance independently.

Fascinating. As we mentioned at the start, we are a marketing agency focused exclusively on EdTechs, so I have to ask about growth strategies. This is going to be a sharper question: If you had to choose just one marketing workstream for Luca in your current market, which would it be? Where would you invest if you could only focus on one thing?

Brand awareness. We operate as a B2B company, so I’d say brand awareness is key, especially to support our outbound channel. You know the experience: a company calls, sparks interest during the first conversation, but what’s next? Then you see an email campaign, notice ads, or attend one of their events or conferences. Maybe you hear a case study about their success with another school or see their branding outside a nearby school.

Positioning Luca as an expert in Education 2.0 or 3.0 through awareness initiatives would be my top priority.

That’s for today, but historically, you’ve mentioned outbound outreach several times. Has that been the channel with the highest return on your marketing investment?

Not the highest return on marketing investment, but definitely the highest return on staff investment. For a long time, we didn’t spend on marketing at all. My background in banking and operations has influenced me to focus on scaling processes efficiently. So we built a team dedicated to consistent outbound calling to schools, aiming to secure those first meetings. From there, it was up to our sales team.

Instead of investing in events or YouTube and LinkedIn ads, we validated the model first. The unit economics are excellent: for every euro spent on salaries, we generate six euros in sales within a year. Only now, after building brand recognition and gaining tens of thousands of users, have we shifted to marketing. This year, we’ve ramped up event participation, I’ve personally given numerous talks as the company’s founder, and we’ve started investing in SEO.

Several questions come to mind. First, what’s the most common objection or excuse you face during that initial engagement with a school? Specifically, what behavioral challenges or hesitations are most prevalent?

The main one is that they haven’t heard of us before, which ties back to why brand awareness is so critical. We call a lot of people—an extensive number—and initial reactions often stem from distrust. As the saying goes in Mexico, “Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t.” This mindset is especially strong in the education sector.

We aim to make our sales process as consultative as possible. Whether it’s an SDR making the first call or someone further along the funnel, we emphasize asking good questions and listening carefully. Our rule is that the customer should talk 60–70% of the time, and we speak only 30–40%.

One misconception we encounter is that adopting our technology requires equipping classrooms with expensive devices like iPads. That’s not true—Luca works with just a simple projector. In fact, we’re against an approach that relies solely on screens for learning.

At the start, some schools dismiss us outright: “We don’t have iPads.” So we must overcome skepticism and demonstrate how Luca is easy to use, with minimal training required. It’s as intuitive as Netflix or YouTube, and there’s no need to dedicate a learning manager to onboard the entire staff.

You also mentioned events. What are the most important K-12 events in Mexico?

It’s not like K-12 in the U.S., where you have large conferences with education secretaries. Here, it’s more localized. Federations play a crucial role, and we’ve started working with them to organize events. Associations of Catholic schools or multicultural schools often host events, as do school comparison platforms.

We also sponsor our own events, bringing in speakers to attract schools. Additionally, there’s a significant educational marketing event focused on topics like social media presence, NPS surveys, and retention strategies. It challenges schools to think more like businesses, emphasizing the importance of attracting and retaining parents as customers.

Fascinating. Frederico, in these last two minutes, is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to mention?

I think the audience might find our funding journey and learnings on building a business interesting. The education market is enormous, with numerous unicorns thriving by selling solutions to schools.

There’s a common skepticism that selling to schools is difficult, but we and other companies in Latin America are proving it’s possible to scale. In one year, you can go from selling to 10 schools to 200. This level of iteration and product improvement is remarkable, and retention in this sector is exceptionally high.

For marketing, the challenge is positioning yourself as an underdog with a superior product but lower market share and brand recognition. How do you tell your story effectively? It reminds me of the neobanking wave in London—Lloyds Bank versus Revolut, with Revolut boldly showcasing its advantages on billboards.

I believe the education market is nearing that point of evolution, where bold, creative marketing becomes a necessity. Startups, whether funded or generating cash organically, are increasingly willing to invest in agencies that deliver positive ROI. It’s an exciting opportunity for collaboration between agencies and EdTech companies.

Excellent, and a very relevant closing for us. Thank you so much, Frederico.