Economics
Venezuela’s Meltdown Creates a Nation of Desperate Capitalists
Entrepreneurship is thriving in the heart of the economically ravaged socialist country.
Jose Ramirez, a lifelong tinkerer, practices his new craft: repairing lightbulbs.
Photographer: Carlos Becerra/Bloomberg“The lightbulb lady is here!”
Yessica Vaamonde spends weekends climbing the narrow stairs of Caracas’s biggest slum, Petare, calling out for damaged light bulbs. She offers 30 bolivars each—in cash—which she collects by selling avocados on one of the Venezuelan city’s busiest avenues.