NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – Ewerton Borges considers himself living proof the American Dream is alive and well.
He came to New York City from Brazil, started out as a custodian, rose in the company, and eventually bought out a former competitor.
“Long story short, from cleaning floors, running machines, to fixing them, to learn the technical side, to learn the financial side – everything,” he tells Joe Connolly. “That’s what they call home grown.”
Find more 50th anniversary special features here, and be sure to follow the station on Facebook and Twitter.
Borges now runs Spectra Polymers & Color on Long Island. It’s part of the plastics industry – serving as sort of a middle man between the raw materials and final users.
After the company he started out with got acquired, he approached a former competitor.
“I went in and said, ‘Look, can I see your machine?’ And came out an hour later with a company,” he says.