Business Buzz has been following Omar Vázquez and his Sargablock since the beginning, and this is one of those local stories that just keeps getting better.
Omar started experimenting with sargassum during the massive 2018 arrivals, eventually figuring out how to incorporate it into construction blocks. His first proof of concept was Casa Angelita, a home in Puerto Morelos named for his mother and built with more than 2,000 Sargablocks.
What started with wooden molds and about 200 blocks a day has grown into an operation capable of producing as many as 5,000. Omar says Sargablock has also donated 21 homes right here in Quintana Roo.
Now the idea is heading beyond Mexico. Sargablock has sold its first international franchise license in the Dominican Republic, with another project developing in Belize and interest from elsewhere in the Caribbean. Rather than shipping Mexican blocks around the region, Omar wants communities to make them locally using their own sargassum.
Why this matters: We hear a lot about turning sargassum from a costly nuisance into something useful. Omar has spent eight years actually doing it. If his model can work elsewhere in the Caribbean, a homegrown Puerto Morelos business could become part of a much bigger solution.
Leave a Reply