Business Spotlight: Garden City - La Mexicana
Welcome to another DFB business spotlight. As a community bank, local businesses are important to us just as they’re important to the community we both serve. So, we like to help celebrate their success.
Today, we will be looking at La Mexicana in Garden City. It’s a special little store that took its owner a lot of work and dedication to get off the ground.
Cresenanciao Garcia opened La Mexicana 15 years ago in 2007. We’re going to look at what it took for him to get to where he is now, and the legacy he hopes for his store and children.
Cresenciano and Luz Garcia
Cresenciano Garcia wakes up to start work at 4 AM every day at Tyson. He works through his shift, and when most people would go home for the day, Cresenciano heads to his store “La Mexicana” until closing down at 8 PM. If you’re doing the math, that’s a 16-hour workday.
La Mexicana is a Hispanic grocery store and meat market in Garden City, Kansas, and it is Cresenciano’s pride and joy.
Cresenciano runs the store with his wife Luz Garcia. Luz runs the business, and Cresenciano runs and manages the meat market. Together they have kept La Mexicana a successful business, serving the community for 15 years.
But it took a lot of work to get here
The Road to Opening La Mexicana
Before Cresenciano had the store, he worked at another grocery store and meat market while working full time at Tyson. A few years after he started working there, the store went up for sale. Cresenciano set his mind to the task of buying it.
Unfortunately, he didn’t qualify for the loan to make the purchase, and it appeared as though it wasn’t yet his time. Still, he never gave up and always knew that the right prospect was right around the corner. Cresenciano kept working at Tyson, biding his time until the perfect opportunity.
That opportunity finally came when what is now La Mexicana came up for sale. He qualified for a loan with Dream First Bank, and he jumped to make the deal happen. Cresenciano finally had the building for his dream store.
But he still only had an empty building and a dream. To open a meat market, he’d need the right tools: slicing tables, freezers, and refrigerators. Which, with his quick thinking and a little bit of luck, he managed to purchase everything he needed from another local grocery store that had just gone out of business.
A Legacy of Work and Dedication
Since then, he has been running a successful business that serves his community with quality service.
Creseniano hopes that he will be able to pass La Mexicana on to his children, providing them with a legacy of hard work and dedication. A legacy that will teach them the value of being able to own a business.
What’s more, Creseniano hopes this legacy gives his children the opportunities that they need to someday open businesses of their own.
Closing Comments
We here at DFB are proud of La Mexicana and the work Creseniano put into making his dream a reality. We hope you’ve enjoyed this spotlight, and encourage you to go see Creseniano and Luz at La Mexicana.
Supporting local businesses like La Mexicana keeps money in our community and local economy strong. That’s why DFB loves to help give people the chance to open the business of their dreams and add more character to our lovely community.
If you’re looking to open your own local business, we are here to help. DFB provides business loans and other services for businesses that support our community.