Carlos Saladrigas

Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Regis HR, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS INC

Search every verified Carlos Saladrigas interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Carlos Saladrigas, co-founder and CEO of Regis HR at Advance Auto Parts and a leader of the Cuba Study Group, appeared on a March 2026 program to discuss economic reconstruction in Cuba. He said he has advocated since 2001 for economic opening and an end to the U.S. embargo, stating that he has personally invested no money in Cuba and has no interest in a future role there. He described his work with the Cuba Emprende project, which he said has trained over 15,000 people as entrepreneurs for more than 15 years, and said the project has been funded entirely with private money. He also estimated that stabilizing Cuba’s economy would take two to four years and cost between $6 and $10 billion, based on his study of other transitions. In a 2012 interview, Saladrigas discussed his shift from a hardline stance on Cuba. He said that seeing Pope John Paul II’s visit to Cuba on television made him realize he had made a serious mistake, and he subsequently re-evaluated his position. He stated that after 53 years of failed policy, he sought a new approach to bridge the gap with the Cuban people, arguing that helping Cubans directly was a better strategy than focusing on hurting the regime.