SPEAKER_04 0:00

All right, ready to go?

SPEAKER_02 0:01

Yes, sir.

SPEAKER_04 0:02

What's going on, y'all? Welcome back to the Corpus Christi Originals podcast. Back at it again. This is the uh Corpus and Coffee edition. Since we're going on the road outside the studio, we are uh at Lupe's spot here, choose wisely 5802 Wooldridge inside Texas Arena. And the brew of the day is abundantly brewed. They got a spot upstairs, 5802. Check them out. I got the white mocha. Good stuff here, you guys. Check them out. Uh so Lupe, what's going on, man? How you doing? I'm doing well, man. Appreciate you asking. Nice to meet you, dude.

SPEAKER_01 0:28

Yeah, not for sure.

SPEAKER_04 0:29

Bro, yeah, I was in contact with your cousin Zay. Okay. Uh, that's cool.

SPEAKER_01 0:32

Are y'all really cousins? Yeah, well, uh, so his grandma, his grandma used to be my dad's uh girlfriend when we were growing up. But she was there for like the majority of my childhood, so I always refer to her as my mom in that sense, you know. Uh so yeah, we uh we met that way. Uh Zay must have been probably five, six years old when I met him. And uh I always uh I always looked at him like as a nephew. I'm not trying nephew, bro, but I was looking at him as a nephew when we were kids growing up, and now he's cuz, you know? Nah. We're both older now. So that's dope, bro. That's dope.

SPEAKER_04 1:04

So the just for the people that don't know who you are, what you do, can you introduce yourself?

SPEAKER_01 1:07

Sure. My name's Luperamos. I'm from Corpus Christi, Texas. Uh I'm a native from here, born and raised. Uh I'm a lot of things, man. I'm a I'm a husband, I'm a father, I'm a child of God, I'm a graphic designer, I'm uh I do a lot of things, man. I wear a lot of hats. Uh but yeah, that's basically what I do.

SPEAKER_04 1:23

Yeah, so when did you decide, hey, I don't want to do a nine to five? I want to have all these hats instead of just one.

SPEAKER_01 1:29

Yeah, uh that was in 2020. I want to say uh it was at the tail end of 2020, uh, after COVID happened. Uh that's when I came to the conclusion that I just wanted something else, you know. Um, you know, that was uh that wasn't technically, that wasn't necessarily a rough year, uh, but that year it caused me to think about a lot of things in a different perspective. Wow, to where I was like, okay, if this were to happen again, would my family be straight? You know, so that caused me to uh to take a whole different route than than what I was doing before. So you were out of job? Like you you weren't working, is did COVID do that? Or yeah, no, I was working, uh, but it was uh what what did they call it? Uh uh what type of personnel? Essential personnel. Essential working, right? Essential personnel. Uh at that time I was working sales at a gym out in the valley. And uh thankfully they continued to uh to pay us a certain percentage of our check while COVID was happening. Uh but it wasn't, I wasn't in charge of what I was being paid, and that's what made me realize okay, I don't have this in my own hands. There's no there's no control over this, you know.

SPEAKER_04 2:40

Oh man, you your your jewelry looks fresh, bro. You look nice, bro. I appreciate it. That's my gummo right there. Definitely, man. Thank you, bro. Yeah, yeah. So uh what was I gonna say? So did you go to school for business? You were in the navy, dude. That's impressive. That's impressive to me. Uh I will I I had wanted to at one point get into the military, and it's like it a kind of a regret that I had, you know what I mean? But I didn't really think about it until like in my late 20s.

SPEAKER_02 3:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 3:05

You know what I mean? Not in the early, but but that's definitely impressive to me, man. So is that is that did you take do you take that with you throughout your your walk after that? Like, I mean, what was the whole inspiration and wanting to get into the service?

SPEAKER_01 3:20

100%. So uh I carry that with me and everything that I do, you know. It's uh it's definitely a part of it's definitely a part of my life. Uh I learned a lot of discipline, a lot, learned a lot of uh respect. I I I knew I was I've always been a big person of respect since I was a kid. Um that kind of amplified it. Uh and I've always been a huge person of uh oh, well actually one thing that I got out of it the most was networking, you know. But in regards to what led me uh into the service, I I grew up, my grandma raised me since I was two years old. I grew up on her household. Uh my mom's and pops were uh kind of both in and out of my life as a child. Uh they were already separated before I was even born. They were separated, they were divorced between before the last two kids that they had were born. So so yeah, uh so growing up, go ahead.

SPEAKER_04 4:09

Yeah, there's a lot of that going on, man. Like my parents are divorced too. I have one brother that's the same mom, same dad, different brothers from from my dad's side and my mom's side, and it's like not uncommon around here.

SPEAKER_01 4:21

No, for sure. Uh so yeah, I I grew up with my grandma. She taught me a lot of different things. Uh, not necessarily uh teaching me per se, but I observed a lot as I was growing up through her uh with her. Uh she was definitely strict on me. Uh she was definitely uh a hustler. My grandpa passed away when I was nine years old. And between the time that my grandpa passed away and when my grandma passed away was almost 20 years. Uh so she held it down for a long time after he left. So uh what go ahead.

SPEAKER_04 4:53

Yeah, did you have did you have like trouble like dealing with uh authority figures that were male? Uh no, not um because since your grandmother was kind of there, most it seems like it.

SPEAKER_01 5:03

Yeah, that's that's tough, man. Uh, you know, that's that's really tough because I don't even till this day, I don't look at people as authority figures. Like I feel like I feel like authority is such a strong word, and I feel like that takes away from how you view yourself as a person, you know? And I say that because uh, like I said, growing up with my under my grandma, uh, she was super strict. Uh I it was respectful. It wasn't it wasn't like my grandma was an authority figure, she was just strict, and I understood why she was strict. Uh that led me going into the military because you know, I didn't want to, I wanted I found myself as a kid always doing things to kind of make her proud, you know. Uh so I excelled in a lot of things. I excelled in my sports. Uh my grades were not the best, but I did graduate with honors. Uh, and that was really just to show to my grandma that I could do it, you know. Uh, as far as uh role models go, I uh I embraced a lot of my uh coaches, like as far as uh male figures in my life, coaches, teachers I really looked up to. Um never really perceived them as authority figures, right? Even when I was in the military.

SPEAKER_04 6:16

Well, okay, so what I'm I'm confused. I I get that we have two diff definitions of authority figures. Well, what do you what do you consider an authority figure?

SPEAKER_01 6:24

An authority figure to me is someone who thinks that they're above you in a sense. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:29

Okay, okay. Yeah, I'm thinking authority figure like people that are like coaches, teachers, and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_01 6:35

Oh, okay, so so yeah, no, but you see, uh, I would refer to them as role models or male figure, you know. Um just just the word of I guess I guess the word authority is kind of uh like triggering for me. That's what I mean. Yeah, that's what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_04 6:50

Like, was it difficult growing up in a in a in a mother household when you know, say somebody that claims to have authority, yeah, or like like using it to their advantage or to manipulate and stuff like that? Did you could you tell, you know what I mean, that oh they're trying to one-up me a hundred percent, you know what I mean? And how would you deal with it too at the same time, you know?

SPEAKER_01 7:14

Yeah, so I I never dealt with that as a child or even as a young adult, but I did deal with it when I was in the service. Absolutely a hundred percent in the service. Uh, because you know, growing up, I was always raised on, hey, you treat people how you want to be treated, you respect the people in front of you. Sorry about that. That's good. You respect the people, uh, anyone, whether they're uh, you know, family, uh, who elderly, whatever the case might be. And uh so going into the military, where I'm used to uh respecting and being respected by anyone and everyone, uh, it wasn't like that in the service. Oh, sure. Because people who've been in longer or or uh people who have a higher rank, they expect you to respect them because of their rank. You know, I don't I didn't grow up that way. I was taught you treat people right, you respect them, they're gonna respect you. Right. You know what I mean? So uh I did have a lot of tough times uh that I could recall while I was serving in the military uh from people who uh thought they were above me. In a sense they were, you know, as far as rank goes and stuff like that. Right. But I also gravitated towards and was gravitated by a lot of people who respected me for always being who I was, regardless of their rank, their whether they were higher up or whether uh they were lower than me or whatever the case might be.

SPEAKER_04 8:30

Yeah, for sure. And uh shout out to Lito Cool. Lito uh uh respond if you please podcast. He was on he was over here the other day. Y'all touched on a subject about uh you know our kids, the people, the youth in our city and stuff like that. And it's like how how do they handle uh people that are in in the at that authority position as well? Because a lot of them are maybe raised by their mothers, yeah, and this this male figure comes along like, well, you can't tell me what to do, or whatever type type of stuff. You know what I mean? It's how like how do we uh how do we have that respect like you have because I was raised like that too, man? Yeah, my dad was like, yes, sir, no, yes, ma'am. Yeah, you know, same here. That type of stuff. It's like how do we get our culture on that side so that we can continue to progress as a society, you know what I mean? Uh what are your thoughts on that?

SPEAKER_01 9:18

So I think it's all about finding common ground, man. Uh, you know, I'm no stranger to um admitting my faults and admitting my shortcomings and my failures, uh, because ultimately it was through those things that I've been able to grow uh both personally and within my business. And uh, but at the same time, I think by doing that, it lets people know, like, hey, well, this guy's not perfect. Uh in a sense, it gives people more uh they're more willing to come to me and open up to me about what their experiences current currently is, you know. Because of how you treated them at the onset? Absolutely, absolutely. Not only that, but because I let people know, like, hey, I'm not I'm not perfect. Like social media, don't let social media fool you. You know, I there's demons that I fight every day, uh, just like anybody else. Uh I'm still a work in progress. God is still working on me. Uh as much as I say that, I say that a lot, but it's very true. Uh, He's always working on me. I am not perfect, I never claimed to be. Uh, but it's because of that that I feel like people gravitate towards me, like, hey, I'm not perfect either.

SPEAKER_04 10:26

What were you like before before your life with with God and stuff like that? Because you have seems like you're not religious, but you you you have that type of lifestyle right now. What was it like before before that?

SPEAKER_01 10:38

Yeah, so I've always in a sense had a relationship with God, man. So I can't speak on like how was it before because ever since I was a kid, I always spoke to him. Uh I understand him in a whole different light now because I've been studious of it. I've been I've been willing to go out and and uh attain more information in regards to what my belief is. Uh but going back to when I was a kid, bro, uh my life wasn't perfect either. I just because I grew up with my grandma because she raised me doesn't mean that things were perfect. I grew up with a lot of pain. I grew up with a lot of hurt. I grew up with abandonment issues. I grew up feeling lonely. I I grew up feeling like I was in love. Like these are feelings that I had as a child uh that I couldn't go and speak to anybody about. I it's not like I could go to my grandma's room, hey grandma, I feel lonely. Hey grandma, why don't my parents love me? Hey grandma, why why do I feel this? You so you felt like you felt like you couldn't I yes, it became I say that because my grandma was strict. My grandma was strict, she's old school, you know. Uh she probably would have see it it it was never even a thought for me to go and and and have type those type of conversations with her. Uh mean basically because I feel like she would have probably told me to get the hell out of her room or something, you know. And uh and and and I'm not putting none of nothing bad on my grandma or anything like that because it's because of her that I become the person I am, and she had a lot to do with my upbringing, absolutely, you know, and she didn't have to raise me. It wasn't her job. She didn't have to do anything that she did with me, but she did, she chose to. Uh, and at the same time, she was she was raising me the best that she knew how. Right, you know, so I I completely understand that. Um, but go ahead.

SPEAKER_04 12:16

Uh how many how many brothers and sisters were were in that same household of the time?

SPEAKER_01 12:21

So I grew up, I have four older sisters, I'm the youngest, I'm the only male. Uh, but I didn't grow up with any of my sisters except one, and that was only for about 11 years of our lives, and then she got sent to my mom's house uh because she was acting up, you know. And uh, but I did grow up with a lot of cousins going through the house. Uh I was the the one who stayed there the longest out of anyone who uh my grandma raised, you know. So I did grow up with other cousins uh within the same household and and things of that nature.

SPEAKER_04 12:50

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I can imagine being a grandmother having to raise one of her grandkids, you know what I mean? Like the frustration that can probably come with that, you know what I mean? And maybe possibly looking from her her side of the story, like damn, I gotta raise you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01 13:04

I don't I can't imagine having to do that, you know. Absolutely. That's tough, man. And and it's it wasn't her responsibility at the end of the day, you know. So I'm very grateful for having my grandmother in my life. Uh she definitely uh put me on the right track for a lot of things, you know.

SPEAKER_04 13:18

For sure, man. Yeah, dude, that's awesome. So, so okay, so you grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas. Uh-huh. All right. Are you so you're not from Corpus? Are you from the city? Yeah, no, I'm born and raised here. Oh kidding.

SPEAKER_01 13:28

I grew up right there on Virginia, on the west side on Virginia and Cup, um, right across the street from from Roshaw Elementary, the old school Rosshaw.

SPEAKER_03 13:36

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 13:36

Uh so yeah, I went, I went to Roshaw, went to Martin, went to Moody, graduated from there. So that's uh that's always been home. Moody, bro, god dude.

SPEAKER_04 13:44

I interviewed so many people from Moody, man, and they're all doing stuff like like you're like entrepreneur type stuff, dude. It's amazing. It's like what's going on over there at Moody. You know what I mean? Like the the guy that uh that owns this place or that you know he went to Moody also. And it's just amazing to me that we can have that, we can still come out of that mindset, for sure. That mentality of being Hispanic in South Texas, that type of mold that we you know that we had to break. And then thinking about like our uh uh uncles and aunts and what they had to go through, yeah, that type of stuff right there, man. So you grew up in Corpus Christie, went to those places, and choose wisely. What's uh can tell us more about your your brand or what do you got going?

SPEAKER_01 14:27

Yeah, you know, so so choose wisely, uh that was probably my third name that I came up with when I was uh doing a brand, you know. Uh when I got out the I got out the military in 2013, and uh, you know, on my transition out, I was thinking already, okay, what's my next step? You know, I'm always trying to think what's the what's next, what's the next step? Uh I always have to have like a de a carrot dangling in front of me, bro. Like that that's what moves me, you know. Like what's next? I I can't be idle. I don't like doing nothing. What would you do? Because whenever I was a kid, bro, everything roots from when I was a child. Okay. I couldn't even, bro, I couldn't even sit in my room and watch cartoons. You know what I'm saying? Like there was times where I did, but then doing something, yes, man. What are you doing? Watching TV. Go outside, we need to do this, or this needs to get done, or or go uh go blow the driveway or cut the yard, whatever the case might be, you know. Do you think that was a good lesson? Oh man. Looking back now? You know, I think uh, oh, 100%. Absolutely. I uh but but it's also a gift and a curse, man. Uh, because I'm constantly on my children now, too. You know, but at the same time, I allowed them to rest and I allowed them to be a child too, because I go back to those times and I'm like, man, my grandma was always knocking on my door, asking me to go do something, you know. Uh, but in the long run, uh, I would say that that was a really good thing because she taught me responsibility. Uh, she taught me how to be disciplined, you know. And it's not like she, it's not like she was talking to me and saying, hey, this is your responsibility, this is uh, this is what this means. Like, she was just telling me to do these things. As an adult, looking back, I realized like, hey, that was responsibility. Yeah, don't ask questions, just do it. Just do it, bro. Dang it for real. So that's the that's the household that I grew up in. And and uh I said it's a gift and a curse because the way I raise my children too, bro. I got a 12-year-old uh son, and he's such a great kid, man. And uh, you know, it trips me out because I don't have to do, I don't have to tell him to do nothing. He's already, dude, earlier, like he wakes up, he does his bed, he's in he's in homeschool, so he gets on the computer, he does what he has to do. Uh, I give him allowance. I was never given an allowance. My allowance was like, my allowance was food in my stomach, uh, with the light on. I had water to take a shower, a roof to live under. That was that was my allowance. So my son, uh he does these, he does so many things around the house that I never have to ask him to do anything. So it gets to the point where I take out my wallet, hey, hey, here, son. Here, you know what I mean? And he takes whatever I give him. And uh, this last time, bro, I was like, I seen him cleaning around. I said, Hey son, what's up, Dad? I said, You want some Robux? And he was like, Yeah, I'll take some. I said, I said, uh, $10 or what, bro? This is the first time he ever tries to negotiate with me. Wow. So he says, What about 20? Oh so I said, I look at him, I said, you know what? For every push-up you could do, I'll give you a dollar. Yeah, work for it. So uh, you know, because growing when my son was growing up, he was one of them kids, bro, where he wasn't too confident in himself and he would use those words, I can't. Wow. And those words, words are powerful, man. Uh, whether you're successful or and and this is for everyone watching, you guys, like the trick to life, the the secret code is in your in it's in your words, man. Uh what you choose to say, this is where this is how I take on choose wise day also, right? Like death and death and uh life and death are in the power of the tongue, you know. So the words that you speak, those those manifest into reality, you know. Um, so I've always since I was a kid, oh uh, I don't mean to go back and forth, bro, but to go back to uh I just recalled right now, to go back to your question earlier about how things were before I got into God, right? Uh, this is where I was getting that. So growing up with all the the the bad emotions that I had, uh, I couldn't go to my grandma and talk to her about these things. So I would go across the street to this field, and this field is uh there was a playground and then there was an open field. That field right there, I would go in there and I would I would sit down in the tall grass and I would just talk to God, bro. I was I was eight, nine years old and I would cry. I would cry to him and I would talk to him. And for so this for some reason, bro, I always left those convos with with this this calmness saying, you know what, one day it's gonna get better, it's gonna get better, it's gonna get better. Like, I've always lived my life that way. So I've always had a relationship with God, bro. Like I grew up in the Catholic church because my grandmother, right? Uh I don't I'm not a Catholic now, you know, and nothing against Catholics, it's just that uh I've I'm taking a whole different walk in my faith, you know. And um, it just it's something that I could choose now. It's not hey, get up, we gotta go to church. Yeah, you know what I'm saying? Like that that's how I was raised. I was I was tied to my grandma's hip when I was a kid, bro. Yeah, dude. And so I went to church with her, I did all of that. Um, but you know, as a business owner now, as a as a human being, bro, like I've always been somewhat positive. I've always been a positive thinker, you know. Um, throwing God into the mix of that is just a whole different dynamic. Like I don't stress about anything, bro. Like issues come up, issues come up all the time. Car issues come up, or whatever the case might be. And I have this like this ease to myself now to where it's hey, it's gonna get taken care of. I have faith in there's nothing, you know, obstacles come up, it's just another speed bump. I'm gonna get through it.

SPEAKER_04 19:46

Yeah, what would you tell the people that think that you're you're bulletproof? Because you know what I mean? Go ahead. I was just gonna I was just giving you time to more think about some some formulate some thoughts, but it seems like you got them already.

SPEAKER_01 20:00

No, so as as as far as bulletproof, what do you mean by that exactly?

SPEAKER_04 20:04

Like, okay, people might see you from the outside, oh, he's got a brand, he's got this, because social media can show you the the outside, sure. What's what's it and it can make you look like oh, you're the perfect dude doing this, doing this, you got his family, got it, this and this, and that. Yeah, but we know that that's not it's not true, that's not the big picture, yeah. So, what would you say to somebody that might think, oh, he's got it all together, he's got everything going?

SPEAKER_01 20:28

I would say that nobody does. Nobody does, man. I mean, you know, uh how old are you, brother? Uh 43. 43. So, so we didn't grow up in this like social media world, you know. We we grew up to where, you know, you went outside and you played and you rode your bike with your friends, and and uh, you know, my son, I was driving home one day, bro. My son was probably like two miles from the house, right?

SPEAKER_00 20:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:51

And I rolled down the window and I said, Man, what are you doing, boy? He was like riding my bike. I said, I said, meet me at the house. I'm driving there and I'm thinking, like, am I really gonna get upset with him? I was like, nah, because because, bro, when I was a kid, I grew up where I told you, right? Right, bro, I was riding my bike all the way to downtown to like American Bank Center, but I knew as long as I was home by the time the lights cut off, I was good. But my grandma never knew where I was going. I was going miles away, you know. So I didn't, I let my my son live. I didn't I didn't tell him anything, man. But uh, but as far as uh, you know, social media goes, man, uh, I think we're so quick to post our wins. Uh and and again, I think the reason why I have uh some type of influence, man. I mean, I'm not gonna blow my head up, but I would believe and I would hope that I have some type of influence amongst anyone who has ears to listen to me, you know. Uh, but I I I would like for everyone to know that I'm I'm not perfect, bro. I'm not I like I said, I don't kill I don't claim to be. My life isn't my life, my life is great, bro. I'm gonna be honest. Like I say that, but because it's a perspective, like life is a perspective. I there's still some bad things in Come up, you know. I I still have shortcomings, but it's how I view those things, right? Uh, that makes your life what it is. So, so uh, but like I said, going back to social media, we're so quick to post our wins, and yeah, and this person got this new car or or they're rocking this or they got a business. Like, but man, for any business owner out there, I I guarantee you they'll tell you it's way more than what you think it is. Like, it's I I wish I worked the hours nine to five, you know what I mean? Like, um, I have a lot of responsibility as a business owner to my clients, uh, to to my family, to to uh all my responsibilities, you know. And yeah, and uh so it's it's tough. I mean, there's a lot of stuff that goes on behind the scenes, and um, you know, people don't see well, I started going live probably about a year ago every now and then. Okay, and uh people were you know hitting me up. Damn, bro, you still in the shops? Two or three in the morning. I'm over here pressing t-shirts, knocking out these orders. Like, yeah, that's what I wanted, I wanted people to see like, hey, this guy doesn't just own a business and he's successful. Like, this is the reason why. When I do these things, like go live and do things like this and speak what a business to anyone willing to listen, because I want I want you guys to know, like, there's no difference between me and the next person, man. I'm not special, there's no secret sauce, there's no special ingredients to success. Like, the only thing I could tell you is find something that you're passionate about, chase it, and don't stop. I feel like I feel like stopping is what gets people. I mean, that's that's when you quit. You know, you're gonna have failures, don't get me wrong. Yeah, right, right, right. Right? But learn through those failures, grow from them, become better, become stronger. But the second you stop, that's the one and only true failure is when you stop. The reason why I've gotten where I've gotten, bro, is because I don't stop. I just keep going.

SPEAKER_04 23:46

Yeah, and like even too, like it makes me think about people that don't want to start to begin with, maybe because of past fears, or even being or even like growing up, like don't do that. Yeah, and and but in their in the child's mind, they're like, but I want to try that. Yeah, but the parents like, no, don't do that. Maybe because whatever the parents go going through, whatever the case may be, like, even the person that doesn't start to begin with, like just start. Yeah, if it fails, it fails. You know what I mean? At least you tried, you know what I mean? Absolutely. At least you tried that venture. If it doesn't work, try something else. You know what I mean? That's the good thing about life and and experiences falling down. You know, you're when you ride your bike, learn how to ride your bike, you fall. For sure.

SPEAKER_01 24:28

Get up, try it again, get keep going. Yeah, and and you know what, bro? We're not all of us could test to this. Like, this is when we're a kid learning to walk, right? When a baby falls on his butt after taking a couple steps, you think that baby in their head says, Man, walking's not for me. I'm never gonna do this. Like, the baby don't think that. They get back up and they continue going, right? Right.

SPEAKER_04 24:47

You know what I mean? Well, not only that, they see the adults continuing to walk around, so that's their their influence.

SPEAKER_01 24:52

Yeah, and that's a hundred percent true.

SPEAKER_04 24:54

We wanted to talk, I want to talk about how you're talking about the fentanyl on the respondent to police podcast. You're talking about how kids nowadays are doing that. Who are they looking up to? Where are they getting that influence from? Absolutely, you know what I mean, and how do we flip that and make it make them to do other things that are more beneficial, yeah, positive, beneficial to their to their lifestyle, you know what I mean? Yeah, and uh, I just I just pray that you know what I mean. Uh we continue to work and move, you know what I mean? The way God would want us to move, yeah. Uh so as to, you know, bring his kingdom here, you know, work it out here while while we're down here, you know what I mean? Um, but yeah, so so man, that's that's tough, man. Yeah, for sure, man. That's tough. So, do you feel like all this, all your thoughts and and the the way you live your life is put into your brand? 100%.

SPEAKER_01 25:42

Do you feel like it needs to be a part of your brand? 100%. I I believe that my brand is an extension of myself. Um, you know, it didn't start off that way. Going back to your previous question, I know we're jumping around with it. No, talk it. Going back to your previous question, uh, as far as like how choose wise you was started, bro. Uh, when I was coming out the military in 2013, I was thinking, what's my next step? I always been a fan of clothes, man. And I never had, you know, I I remember going to school, bro, and I would see, you know, the other kids wearing new Jays and having some dope stuff on, and and my stuff was from Pales or Walmart. But you know what? One thing about me is I've always I've always found a way to put something together. It wasn't it wasn't the brand, it was the person wearing it, you know? Right, right, right, right. And I would my grandma would buy me all white shoes and I'd buy some shoelaces different colors, switch up the laces just to match my fit. You know, I remember I played golf when I was a kid too, bro.

SPEAKER_04 26:37

Because what, like what dressing mate dressing that way makes you feel a certain way? Like what was the like the I guess the the drive behind that? You know what I mean? Because me, I'm just like, yeah, shirt, pants, I'm good, but my wife's like, nah, you need to put this, you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01 26:51

I I think, bro, uh, you know, I'm having a revelation right now speaking to you about this, right? I think for me, it was like this is my way of control. Like, cause when I was a kid, I felt like I had no control, right? I didn't have control over what I could, I couldn't even, I didn't have control what I did after school. You know what I'm saying? Like, but my control, my grandma, my grandma never really uh told me, hey, you could wear this and you can't wear that, you know. So I feel like I found freedom in that. Oh wow, you know what I'm saying? It's so crazy thinking about that now. And for sure. And my grandma was the type of person that if you stepped out of this house, you better look good. Unless you're doing yard work or you're doing something, you know, around the house, you better be clean, you better be.

SPEAKER_04 27:32

She would, she didn't tell you why.

SPEAKER_01 27:33

She just no, bro, this is I just followed suit because my grandma, you know, whenever I started getting a little older, my grandma would come to my room and Mijo, what do you think about this? Like she would she would show me what she was wearing. Ah, you know what, grandma, go put on these shoes or put on this jacket. That was super dope, bro. But my grandma had always been someone uh who was like, she had a lot of pride in herself. She had a lot of pride in herself, how she looked, how she presented herself to other people. Uh, I don't want to say my grandpa was necessarily like that, but my grandma did come from that. And I feel like that got passed down to me, you know. Uh we wherever I go, I try to make sure that I'm I'm put together, especially now as a business owner, you know.

SPEAKER_04 28:11

Yeah, for sure. So that's definitely a part of your of your brand and what you do. Wow, that's amazing, dude.

SPEAKER_01 28:16

For sure. Yeah, that's crazy. I never thought about uh about it that way. It's uh it was me feeling like I could control what it works that I was.

SPEAKER_04 28:23

Wow, that's dude, that's amazing, man. It's like it's like even in even in you might you might be you might feel like you're in despair and in that darkness or whatever, but there's that little little bit little ray of light, and that's that's it, you know what I mean? It could be something like that, it could be different for somebody else, you know what I mean? For sure. Maybe like I want to say video games, bro, because like for me, I'm ADD, and I used to like video games because it rewarded my brain really fast, you know what I mean? And that was kind of like my escape, like from dad telling me to go model or go help him with this, whatever, whatever, you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01 28:54

Yeah, so that's dope. That's dope.

SPEAKER_04 28:55

Yeah, so you know it's like a way, you know.

SPEAKER_01 28:57

My grandma bought a computer one year uh when they were still like bulky and had them inside the living room. And bro, you remember those school fairs we would go to? Right? I used bro, I used to beg my grandma, hey, can I have five bucks so I can buy something? What do you want? She finally said, Yes, bro. I bought this BMX game for PC. Bro, I bought this game, I sat down, I played it for like 30 minutes, and my grandma said, That's enough of that game. You're not gonna you're not gonna play no more. I was like, what the heck, bro? Dude, dude, and then and then when I got a 64 one time, my mom bought it for me, right? This is when my mom came in my life, and uh my stepdad bought it for me. I brought it to Corpus, I brought it here because my mom lived in Lulin and I plugged it in, bro. She came in the room, she said, You better you better disconnect that. That's uh that's wasting too much electricity. Oh my goodness, bro.

SPEAKER_04 29:45

I remember showing up to my deal's house. For real, bro. My cousin Roland, dude, he was playing outside on the porch. One of them old school TVs, black and white, the the Nintendo, bro, the the Super Mario Brothers. One of those ones, if you jumped on the porch, it would reset the whole game. Oh man, it had to be still, bro. He's like, Jess, don't jump on the porch, bro. I'm on level eight right now.

SPEAKER_01 30:07

I'm about to remember those days, bro? Man, dude, throwback times. Oh, so so I was getting out of the military. Going back to our question, bro. I was I was getting out of the military in 2013, and I told myself, you know what, I've always been a fan of clothes, you know. Uh I started collecting shoes when I was in the service, like Jordians and stuff, because I couldn't, I didn't have those when I was growing up, you know?

SPEAKER_02 30:29

Yeah, yeah, wow.

SPEAKER_01 30:30

And uh so I opened, I even went as far as opening a LLC for clothing. I called it JR's clothing uh in 2013, bro. Wow. And but I never did anything with it. I never done anything with it, bro.

SPEAKER_04 30:45

So why did you choose uh clothing? How come not like taco truck or uh you know just whatever?

SPEAKER_01 30:51

I feel like that was a way that I could express myself for one, and for two, I feel like that was what I was passionate about. Uh I think it's very important to chase what you're passionate about, man. Uh so 2013 came around and I just never took that step, man. I I I don't know if it was a lot of the self-doubt or can I do this or how do I do this?

SPEAKER_04 31:11

Did you have a lot of stuff going on at that show?

SPEAKER_01 31:13

Uh no, I just got off the service. I I came, I had just got home from a deployment, so I had saved up a lot of money while I was gone, so I kind of sat on that. That paid my bills, and then to be honest, bro, I started hustling in 2013 and I did that for about two years. So I didn't I okay, when I got home, I worked at Lowe's, bro. I worked at Lowe's for uh probably two or three months. I just it wasn't for me. It wasn't the nine to five thing, was it just wasn't for me, bro. I didn't like this. Yeah, it just didn't like it. It just wasn't for me, bro. So I I kept hustling, I made money that way, and then uh in 2015, my life completely changed. I uh I read this book, bro. I went to Barnes and Noble one day and I was like, uh, and I don't read books, bro. Like I wasn't a reader at the time. And uh went to Barnes and Noble and I I found this book. It's called The 12 Gateways to Everyday Enlightenment by Dan Millman, and I picked it up and I just started reading, bro. And uh I learned a lot through that book. It made me question a lot of my the things that I do, and I was like, okay, what has does is there anything that has a chokehold on me, right? And those things were weed, it was alcohol, it was uh it was hustling, it was a few things, you know, it was money. And I told my I kept reading it and I did like a 30-day fast or 40-day fast, I think it was. Uh oh no, I'm sorry, it was a three-month fast I did away from all of these things. And as I was doing it and I was reading, light bulbs started going off in my head. I said, Man, like I'm thinking clearer, I feel a lot more sharper. Uh, then I started doing uh electricity sales, which is what my sister Julie shout out to my sister Julie. She had did for such a long time already, she had been trying to get me into it. So I started doing electricity sales, and so I'm I'm hustling business to business now, going to talk to business owners, selling them electricity contracts. Uh so that that took my hustle game to a whole nother level as far as like uh communication skills, uh being able to read body language, just sales in general, bro. Amazing. And it was at that job to where I became a bigger reader because every morning we were we would read a book for about 10-15 minutes. We'd give takeaways about what we learned. That job right there, bro, honestly is what got me to where I'm at now because it was a good foundation. I I was a master's student. I stripped away everything I thought I knew about sales, and I learned I learned new, new things. Um, not only about sales, but uh things that I could apply to my life, you know. And I did that for about five years, got real good. I became corporate trainer, so I was traveling around Texas. Um, this is whenever I had my my first daughter, and uh I was I was gone Monday through Friday, home, Saturday, Sunday, uh for a long time, you know. And um, yeah, bro, that just amplified the sales. I left from there and then I went to the gym, started doing uh gym memberships, was which was cake because I went from going door to door talking to strangers and still doing good to people sitting in my chair now. Oh my god, you know, so if you sat in my chair, you were sold, you know what I'm saying? So then COVID happened. I told myself, you know what? I've been making money for for all these other businesses, like why not make money for myself, you know. Uh so it was I didn't jump straight into choose wisely after that. I started going to school for business, uh, which I just got my degree uh in December, right? And uh went to school for that, learned a lot um through through the the schooling. And then in 2020 uh two, at the end of 2022, I'm already thinking, you know what, let me start my own brand. Um, and I say that because I was uh I was pushing clothes for my sisters, I mean for my uh brother-in-law, which is uh my wife's uh brother-in-law. I call him my brother-in-law. Okay, you're pushing clothes for him? Yeah, because he had his own line. It was super dope. Uh I'm trying to see how long we're going.

SPEAKER_04 34:54

Sorry, man. Uh, so he had his own line, he had his own line, and you were pushing clothes for him.

SPEAKER_01 34:59

Yes. Uh, not for him, but I would go with him to his pop-ups and I'd get out there, bro. You know, and I'd hustle.

SPEAKER_04 35:06

Use your sales technique, whatever, all the time.

SPEAKER_01 35:08

Because to me it was like, I love sales, bro. It's the hustle, you know? And uh, and he at the end, he would throw me a pair of shorts or something from his brand. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, and uh I we went to Vegas one time to go meet with some people out there, and while we were uh having a drink later on that night, we sat down and I'm thinking, like, okay, how am I gonna approach him about this? I wanted to buy into his business, you know, because it was already established. Oh, wow. I was selling stuff, it was profitable already for him. So I sat down with him and he told me no. And he wasn't rude about it. He just said that he's not at the time, he's not like taking any offers or he doesn't want anyone involved in his business. Respect, you know. But that was the moment right there when I was like, all right, cool. I've already sold for him. Let me start doing my own thing. Wow, yeah. So I started with hats, bro. I started selling hats. That led to t-shirts, that led to me uh going to school for designing, which I I did for about two and a half years. That led to me doing designs for people, that led to me, that led to people coming to me to launch their own brands. Like, wow, it was just this trickle-down effect, bro. It was so crazy. Amazing. Uh, so that's that's where Choose Wisely started, right there. It was at the end of 2022. And I officially launched in um in about September 2023. Uh so going on three years now, and uh every year it's just been new levels, new levels, new levels. Like the more I learn about this, the more excited I get, um, the more I'm able to help people out. And it's uh and and ultimately, bro, aside from the money, aside from for anything else, I've been able to create a platform for myself. And I don't take that lightly because there comes responsibility with that. And you know, as a man of faith and and I'm walking my walk, now I use uh my clothing as a message to get the word out there, you know. Uh I use my platform as a message to to advocate for drug use, to advocate for drinking and driving. I I try to use my platform for the good, you know, you know what I mean? Not that I didn't before, but now I feel like I have a platform to be able to do those things. And I just wanna I just want to do right by God, do right by my family, do right by the people, you know, who look up to me and and try to lead them the right way. You know, do you so are you associated with the choose love foundation? So choose love. So choose love I launched in uh in 2025 in the in the summertime last year.

SPEAKER_04 37:28

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 37:29

Uh so how that came to fruition, um, you know, I started my walk in July 2025. And uh we've you know, thankfully my my wife is a great woman, man, and and she's uh she's always instilled this type of like patience and and love and just all good things into my kids, man, and to myself too, you know. Shout out to my wife. And uh, you know, one day we were leaving to go grab something to eat, and uh we smelled like fire, bro. It was bad. And um my daughter, my daughter says, Hey, can we pull over to pray? And I said, Bet. My daughter was only six years old at the time, bro.

SPEAKER_03 38:08

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 38:09

She said, Can we pull over to pray? Yeah, so we pulled over, she said a prayer, and then we kept it going, and then on the way home, uh she was like, Can we go by the house? So we went by the house, it was right behind us, and uh it was bad, bro. It was a bad fire, like it was torched, you know? And the next day, bro, she she takes me to her room and she's like, Hey dad, I have all these toys. Can I go take them to that family? Can we take them to that family? Because maybe they have kids. Oh my god. And I'm I'm looking at my wife like, man, these things that she does that my that my kids do without us even having to ask them or tell them, it just makes us feel great, bro. You know, it's it's uh it's uh it's confirmation that you know we're doing the best that we can.

SPEAKER_02 38:48

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 38:49

Uh so I go over there, uh, I pull up, and and uh good brother of mine. Uh I get off the car and I go introduce myself and he was like, You're loop it, right? And I was like, what the heck? He was like, You're loop it, right? Shout out to my brother Ralph. And uh I was like, Yes, sir. He was like, You're you're with Choose Wisely. I said, Yes, sir. And he was like, Oh man, I wanted to go by your shop so I could go and get some clothes. And I was like, No, bro, like I came here for this. Like, he's wow, you know what I'm saying? Like, he he he was talking to me about coming to the shop and and supporting the brand. And and I'm I'm telling him, like, no, bro, like I want to, I came by so I could get your info, see what it is that we could do to help you out. Uh my my daughter put it on my heart to come talk to you, you know, and uh and it wasn't until later that day where my wife was like, Hey babe, what if you started a foundation? And I was like, What do you mean? She was like, What if you, you know, you could help people maybe once a month you give away to a family who's in need, or whatever the case might be. And and that's how Choose Love was I was founded, you know. Oh amazing. And we've helped about five families since then, uh, four to five families since then. And uh, you know, we've raised money, we've raised donations, uh, we use uh the brand to advocate for whether it was fires or whether it was drunk driving, whatever the case might be. But that's just uh that's just my way of trying to give back the best that I can, you know. I feel like that I've been blessed beyond measure, bro. And uh who am I to not give back? You know, I've always been a person of abundance. Uh I don't believe in in scarcity. I believe that there's uh not only enough, but more than enough for all of us to eat and to go around.

SPEAKER_04 40:23

That's amazing, bro. That's amazing. Yeah, so the the choose love foundation, man. Yeah, uh man, that's amazing. It's like how do you get to that point where you want to give instead of you know take, yeah, you know what I mean? Because we can be selfish people.

SPEAKER_01 40:39

Absolutely. I I can testify to that, bro. You know what I mean? And I still have selfish ways to this day.

SPEAKER_04 40:44

Yeah, and it's like how do you I guess you have to it's a it's a mindset change, man, for sure. And it's like it seems like God is the way through that you have to see it through his eyes, which he allows us to see with with the help of his Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ and that stuff like that. 100%. It's like that's the only way that we can really figure out what we need to do here while we're here, you know what I mean? With what we have, like for you, you're using your your your clothing brand. Yeah, or what you know, what you're doing in your day-to-day life. Yeah, for me, like I'm a truck driver, bro. Like, I can influence my kids, I can influence people that I talk to. The operator, I got a podcast, you know what I mean? People that I talk to, you know what I mean. You know, I was thinking this the other day, dude, Corpus Christi originals, the body of Christ originals, dude. Oh, come on. And I was like, what the heck? You know, and you know, God just shows these things to me, man, and it's it's amazing what uh what can be done through us. Yeah, and not relying vessels, man. Yeah, exactly, dude. We're vessels, man.

SPEAKER_01 41:46

It's bigger than us, man. You know, it's we're we're we all play like we all play the main character in our own life, but it's it's much bigger than that, bro. Like, I think uh I think for me when I when I think about this, bro, it's like how do I want to be remembered when I'm no longer here? Oh, sure. You know what I mean? And I call that the dash. I say that because there's a day that you're born, there's a day that you die. And in the middle of that is your dash. Oh what is your your legacy? That's your dash, you know?

SPEAKER_04 42:14

Like what'd you do with your life while you were between that and what is your impact?

SPEAKER_01 42:18

Who's gonna remember you, how they're gonna remember you, you know, and and that's huge, man. And I want to make I want to be able to make a generational impact.

SPEAKER_04 42:25

So so your your clothing brand, it would you say it's like a faith-based brand or uh when you've started it? Is that uh is that originally how you looked at it? What when did you go from like just pre just pressing shirts and and hats to like an actual having meaning behind the shirts and the hats?

SPEAKER_01 42:41

Yeah, for sure. Um so so choose wisely, man. It was it was just a name in the beginning. Uh it was more, you know, advocate for just making the best decision that you can. Uh and I I feel like it was so diverse, you know, so broad that anybody who read those two simple words could say, you know what, I'm gonna choose wisely. I'm gonna it could be any, should I pop this pill? No, should I go to should I go to church? Like, should I do this? Like you're at the end of the day, you're left with a yes or no, you know? Right. And uh so that's how it started off. I just thought it was pretty cool, you know. And then uh as things progressed, and when I started walking to my faith, I was just like, man, this this means something different to me now, you know. Uh it elevated more than just some two cool words. And uh now it's uh it is it is faith-based. I try to put messages within my brand now, whether it's a silver cross or or scripture, uh, it's just my way to be able to go. See no some people go out and preach, some people go out and minister. But I feel like my calling is uh doing clothing and putting messages on. Creativity, man. Creativity. I don't I don't feel like I'm I don't feel like I'm in a box, you know. I feel like I have just freedom to go out and create.

SPEAKER_04 43:55

So so do you is this your full time job, like what you're doing here? Yeah. Nice, yeah, man. How you feel about that?

SPEAKER_01 44:01

Great, bro. It's uh, you know, uh thank God it's I've been able to provide for for myself and for my family. And uh, you know, I haven't had a job since 2020 as far as you know, something like a nine to five. Uh I worked, I worked other things in the meantime before, like as I was launching the brand, I would I would do uh you know, remodeling jobs or or uh plumbing or little things like that, uh, to make enough money to finance what my dream was, and my dream is this, you know.

SPEAKER_04 44:32

Man, so let's get into that. Like so brand branding, do you feel okay, so you're living off of this, which is amazing, dude. Which is a lot of people because it seems like the barrier to entry to making t-shirts and hats like that, people can do it. Yeah, but to get to to the point where you're living off of it is it's it's a feat, man. That's that that's amazing.

SPEAKER_01 44:54

Yeah. Um and you know, just to to uh give a little bit more detail to that, it's uh it's just scaling, bro. That's all it is, you know. Shout out to my brother Nick. Uh he lives out there in San Diego. We served in the military together, and he's always kind of been like my uh advisor, my business advisor, you know, uh unofficially, officially, you know. And uh and and he's the one who I ran the name of the business by when I first started. And and he was he's he's always honest with me. He he lets me know when I'm messing up, he lets me know when something doesn't sound good, and I passed two names to him. He was like, That's not it. I introduced just wiser to him, and he was like, That's the one. And I say that to say this. So, so in the very beginning, when I started, uh I remember I'm telling him, Man, bro, I made a hundred bucks doing this. Or hey, okay, you can make a hundred, you can make a thousand. You can make a thousand, you can make ten thousand. You can make ten thousand, you can make a hundred thousand. Like he put that in perspective for me. And at the time when I was still growing, I was like, Well, can I? You know what I mean? And then, and then those phone calls changed. Hey, bro, I made a thousand dollars today, you know? Hey, bro, I made 10 G's this month, you know what I mean? And those things, and and I think by the time I got to about 10, having those combos with him, I told myself, you know what, now I understand what you're saying by by scaling it, you know. Uh, and then it becomes like, okay, if you can make 10, you can make 100, 100, you can make a mil. It's just has how far do you want to take it? And not necessarily how thin are you really, uh, are you willing to stretch yourself, but the smart way, bro, is what systems can you put in place to be able to grow it where you want to grow it. Because today, I'm I'm today I have this vision of taking this to a quarter mil, more than a quarter mil, bro. Uh, because we almost did that last year.

SPEAKER_03 46:38

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 46:39

And I'm I'm wanting to scale this to 300k to 500k. Uh, and it's doable, you know. There's people out there doing it. Um, but I also know how it looks when I put my 100% into this. I know how that looks. It looks like time away from my family. It looks like my health getting uh deteriorating. Wow. It looks like my my stress going up and me going to the ER. I went bro, I went to the ER probably four, maybe five times last year. You know what I mean? I overworked myself, but I told myself last year, 2025, let me put 100% of myself in this and see where I could take it. I did that. Now my thing is like, what systems can I put in place to make even more bread and take myself out of here to give myself to give more of myself to my family. And the trick to that is just systems, bro. Like, I'm gonna hire someone pretty soon, probably in the next uh in the next 30 to 45 days. Delegate. Yes, that's it. While while I bro, my dream is sit at home in my living room, design, do business from there, come in here to check on uh on quality, you know, quality uh control uh while orders still go out. You know, that's that's the that's the plan, bro. And that's how I'm gonna be able to, that's how we are gonna be able to scale it to where we want to scale it.

SPEAKER_04 47:49

Oh, that's amazing, dude. So what it so are most of your coast customers local? Like what do your customers look like?

SPEAKER_01 47:56

Yeah, so uh uh the majority of them local. I would say about 75%. Uh I also ship out to California, I ship out to other pl parts of Texas as well. Uh New York I've shipped out there, Arizona I've shipped out there. Uh and and again, I think, I think uh being in the military has opened so many doors for me uh because now I have a lot of veteran friends living in multiple places throughout the state. So that's that's how I'm able to spread my wings a little bit more to these places, you know. Uh but for the most part, you know, local is is uh where a lot of people are uh a lot of people come to me for for business and stuff.

SPEAKER_04 48:31

Wow, that's so cool, man. And and how how much does uh your online store play a factor into your your sales? Or is it mostly word of mouth? I mean, how do you get the sales out there? How do you how do you get the sales?

SPEAKER_01 48:44

So so uh I did have an online uh website in 2023 that lasted for about a year. Uh I currently do not have one, which I'm in the works of uh launching another one this year. Uh but mainly through uh, you know, I think what really, really got me to where I'm at is I did a lot of the footwork, bro. I I hit every pop-up that I could between here, San Antonio, Austin, Houston, uh, Dallas. I've I've driven to all these places, bro. And I'm telling you, like just with my wagon, like uh with uh one of those cheap racks from Walmart, I would put in my wagon, I would hit up these uh sneaker conventions. Shout out to Blindy Pop-ups uh pop-ups, bro. Shout out to Blindy because he put me into the barber scene. He had a he had a uh a barber battle two years ago that I that I uh got into. Um not cutting hair because I don't I'm not I'm not a barber, but right I I showed up over there, sold some shirts, I introduced myself to and I'm huge on networking. Right. I introduced myself to to all these barbers, and that's the majority of my clientele right now is barbers, you know. Nice. Uh but I put in the footwork, bro. There's there's a lot of videos that I have on my phone of just me, you know, dragging my cart around and and uh it was just me by myself, you know, going to these pop-ups and and and making a name for myself.

SPEAKER_04 49:59

Wow, so that networking that that definitely wow that makes a huge difference for sure. So what do you so I what do you tell these people? So how do you when you're at these pop-ups, how do you network your your brand?

SPEAKER_03 50:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 50:12

Like, like say barbers, like how choose wisely? Is it the design? Is it the name?

SPEAKER_01 50:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 50:18

Uh or is it the what do you call it, the uh mission statement or something like that?

SPEAKER_01 50:23

Is what what is it that draw that'll get that sale? You know what, bro? And this is what I learned when I was doing electricity. People buy for me because they like me. Oh it has nothing, it has nothing to do. If the product's dope, cool, right? It has when I when I approach somebody, bro, it has nothing to do with what I'm selling. Like I could go up to you, bro. Hey, bro, where'd you get that tattoo at? Yeah, that's dope, bro. What does that mean to you start talking to them? Because it's about getting personal with people first. If they love you, they're gonna buy from you, right? So when people come across me or I go to them and approach them, I'm bro, I'm not, hey, I'm selling this shirt, check this out. Like, nah, bro, it's talking about where who are you? Where are you from? Because the brand is an extension of myself. Let me let you get to know me first. Because when you get to know me, nine times out of ten, you're not, you're probably not gonna turn me down because you're already investing into me and what this means to me. Right, you know what I'm saying? So a lot of people purchase from me because they want to support what it means to me. Wow. And then the comeback people keep coming back, not only because of that, but because it's dope stuff, you know what I'm saying? Right, right, right, right.

SPEAKER_04 51:23

So, okay, so the initial sale is them liking you, absolutely, and then two 100%. What do you got? What kind of what else do you got? Well, okay, there you go, but it's amazing.

SPEAKER_01 51:32

But by introducing myself, uh as far as like who I am and getting to know that person too, because I'm I'm big on that, bro. Like, I'm big on getting to know who you are because you're not just a client to me. Okay, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go ahead.

SPEAKER_04 51:45

Yeah, no, the people that you do sell to what once you you get to know them, yep, then you have a person, is it a persona or a hundred? It's a personal relationship. Okay, you know what I mean? So good. So what I'm trying to get at is that you start to see what the types of designs that they like, and then maybe you throw it on your designs, or or is it still just what you design? You know what I mean? That second sell, because you're like, okay, what are they gonna like out of this? Oh, no, no. So how do you uh how do you decide? You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01 52:12

Yeah, I don't I don't really put other people in mind whenever I'm designing something. I try to stay in the state of creativeness to where um when I'm when I hit a spark of inspiration, like what am I feeling right there that I could put down, you know? So all my designs come from me really just being inspired to create something. Okay, I don't I don't really design something to say, hey, you know what, this person's gonna like this. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_04 52:36

Okay, yeah. So yeah, because I'm thinking about like your customer uh-huh, is it like uh are they male, certain age range, do they have kids? You know what I mean? Do you look at that too? Like is my my audience, I guess you can say this 100%.

SPEAKER_01 52:54

You do, okay. Yeah, I do. And uh, you know, I I'm real big on analytics, man. Uh, you know, I have a I have a book in my backpack right now that I've had the last two or three years. Every single transaction that I have in there, it's descriptive, like, hey, so-and-so bought it, or I'll even go as far as like so-and-so has this many kids. Like, I the more anything that you could measure be can be improved. No, you know what I'm saying? So, so the reason why I've been able to grow this the way I've grown is because every year, at the end of the year, I go back and open that book and I say, you know what, this many sales came from this, from this, from this. Like, that's that's proven to work. So, how do I amplify that moving into next? Amazing, dude.

SPEAKER_04 53:33

Amazing. So, all this game that I'm getting from you, man, because I've got my own, like, I started my own brand before the podcast, which the podcast came from that because I wanted to generate more content, eventually got separated. I'm probably gonna put it back together in the future. But you share you coach people with this type of stuff, right? Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 53:52

Um, anyone who's willing to listen, man. Yeah, okay, okay. I'm not a gatekeeper, never been one. Amazing. Um, you know, I I had that conversation with my wife one day, and and when people ask me about my stuff, where I get it from, or or this and this, like I'll answer, bro, because I'll I'll give you the game, right? But not everybody's gonna go out there and work. Not everyone, I could tell you where I get my stuff from, I could tell you uh, you know, who who does my whatever the case might be, right? I could I could give you the game, but no one's gonna go out there and outwork me. This is what you know I'm saying, and I don't look at it that way either. And if you do, when I see someone, you know, um applying the game that I give them, to me, bro, I look at that and I'm like, you're you're one of the ones. I'm gonna help you even more. You know what I'm saying? Because there's one of my clients, shout out to Bando, there's one of my clients right now who he's come to me for designs, for t-shirts, and hey, he's starting to cook up on his laptop now. He's he asking me questions. Last the last time he came to pick up his order, we sat down. I showed him some tricks on the laptop as far as like Adobe Illustrator goes, and and I see him post what he's posting. I'm always, hey, bro, you're you're cooking right now, you're in the kitchen, you're doing good. This is what you're doing. Now that takes away from him purchasing a design for me, right? Which is cool because now he's he's being a creative himself. Oh, so now it's like, bro, send me what you got, I'll get it printed, we'll model this. You know what I'm saying? Like, I'm I'm very proud of, bro. I'm very proud of you, Bando.

SPEAKER_04 55:13

Wow, man, that's amazing. So you saw potential in him. And they're like, definitely, we we gotta get this guy going. Yep, that's amazing, dude. Yep, not a lot of people are willing to do that, and it's like, because I don't know, maybe they see it from a like a scarcity mindset, because you talked about abundance, right? So they're seeing it from a scarcity mindset. No, they can't have it because they're gonna take my dollars, yeah, for sure. Right? Uh, and do you really think do so that abundance mindset that can I have a brand same as you? Can I work full-time on my brand same as you if we're from the same city? You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01 55:42

Is that like a thousand percent, bro? Like you think so? How many restaurants are here? Oh, true. How many, how many tattoo artists here? How many barbers are here, bro? There's so much to go around.

SPEAKER_04 55:52

Yeah, so I could say, like, well, apparel's different.

SPEAKER_01 55:54

Yep. But is it? There's a lot of there's a lot of people, there's so much talent here in this city, bro. There's so much which there's so much to go around Corpus Christie, Texas. Hey, city by the bay, this is where I'm from. I love, I love this city, bro. Oh, yeah. This city, I've been all over the world, bro. I've traveled, I've lived in different in different places, and I've always gravitated towards corpus Christie. This is where I'm from. Uh, I don't care what people say about it, I love it here. This is where I'm raising my family, this is where I'm planting my roots, and this is where I'm growing my business, Corpus Christie, Texas.

SPEAKER_04 56:24

So there's a lot of talent here. Yeah, a lot of talent here, like you're saying, and we could there could be more than one apparel company out here full-time. Because you're mentioning you're saying there's so many different restaurants, yeah, so many different tattoo artists and stuff like that. Why not this industry as well?

SPEAKER_01 56:40

Why not, bro? It's amazing. Well, I who who bro, who am I to say you can't do clothes? You know what I'm saying? Yes, you can't cut hair. I'm a barber, you shouldn't be a barber. I'm a I'm a graphic designer. What are you doing graphic designing? Nah, bro, there's there's so much to go around, bro. Like, and it's because I believe that it's because of the abundant mindset that I have that I've been able to get even more. You know what I'm saying? Like, wow. It's I'm telling you, bro, everything is about your thoughts, it's about your verb, the words that you use. Like, bro, maybe I'm maybe I'm not someone's cup of tea and the next designer is. You know what I'm saying? Right. You never know, bro. Like, there's there's a lot for to go around.

SPEAKER_04 57:16

That's that's amazing thinking. But like that thinking about having an abundance mindset, you'll have more stuff coming your way. 100% because of that attitude.

SPEAKER_01 57:24

100%, bro. And that's why I'm real big on giving back. Like, I don't give to receive, don't get me wrong. I give because, for one, I have plenty, bro. I have plenty, and I want to be able to, you know what, man? Maybe there's, and this was me before I say it because this was me before. Maybe there's a kid out there who just needs an opportunity, a kid who just needs someone to believe in them. A kid who who, if they had, if they had A, they could execute B. You know what I mean? And if now where I'm at, bro, I used to be that kid who who wish I had this, I could do this. Now I'm that person I wish I had, and maybe I could give so that they could go ahead and and and bro, people just need someone to believe in them sometimes, you know what I mean? And as far as the game giving and all that, bro, you know, when I got on my first uh on my first ship back in 2010, I had my OG shout out to Big Baby from Alabama. Shout out. Um you know, I had my OG look out for me, bro. He he showed me the ropes of the military, he showed me how to network, he showed me, he introduced me to a lot of people on the ship who had access that I didn't have access to. And and I I remember, bro, I was on deployment, my first deployment, and I was I was in the slumps. I missed my grandma. I hadn't talked to her in a while. I I you couldn't make a phone call until you went, until you landed in in a in a uh on land, you know what I mean? And bro, we went to the armory, I was a gunner's mate. He went to the armory, he was like, hey, he was what's your grandma's number? I'll never forget this. I gave him her number, he dialed it from the phone, and he said, Here, you got like two minutes, bro. No, dude. I got that phone, heard my grandma, and I'm thinking, like, what? I'm in the middle of the Persian Gulf right now. Like, how am I talking to my grandma, bro? I talked to her, let her know I was good, hung up. I gave him a hug, cried. I was like, bro, thank you for that. Like, wow, I needed that, you know what I'm saying? And on my second deployment in 2012, there's this kid from Detroit. Shout out Joe D Joe. There's this kid from Detroit who that reminded me reminded me of You went that. You win that. Exactly, bro. I did the same thing. Took him to our army. Hey, what's your pop's number, bro? Boom. Bro, he was so grateful for it. So I've always been a big believer of passing giving it, uh, how do I say, bro? Uh pay it forward. Pay it forward, bro. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_04 59:26

That's amazing, man. Wow, that's amazing. So you got that going on, you got the choose wisely going on. Oh man, this is an amazing conversation. Uh, let's see what else they got here. Yeah. Um let's see what else we got. So you so you you just now moved into this shop over here. Yep. You were on airs. Uh uh, it seems like over there where you were at, there's a bunch of, you know, they got the Candy Andy and Shouting Compound and all these other places over there. Shout out Danny Boy doing the same stuff out here. So you moved over here. Yep. Uh, is there a reason why to move or or you got to open it up soon or what you got there? You know what, man?

SPEAKER_01 1:00:01

Uh I was kind of I was kind of wondering whether I should move or not. The opportunity came up because shout out to Eric over here at uh at uh Texas uh arena strength and fitness. Uh, you know, we were cooking up some designs and he was like, bro, how would it, how would it be if you were in my in my shop, like da-da-da. And I'm thinking, like, nah, I don't want to go over there. I'm I'm comfortable here. Right. I was comfortable there. Oh wow. You know, and uh I I liked it over there on the block on 4701, and and uh there was just something that told me, bro, some I don't know what it was, but something was like, nah, go, you should go. Bro was like, I'm what are you paying here? I told him, he said, I'll match it, bro. I was like, damn, like just give me incentive to go over here, you know, and and you know, I came up with excuses to stay over there on the block at 4701, and yeah, and deep down in my gut, something was just telling me, nah, bro, like just go, like stop being comfortable, get it, get out of your comfort zone, grow again. So ultimately, bro, I came over here and he was gonna put a coffee waves in here because the owner was gonna do one over here. Okay, and uh he was like, man, bro, I'm gonna have this meeting with him. If he if he falls through, you could come get the spot. And I told him right there, I was like, bro, he's not gonna move in there, I'm gonna move in there. And he was like, Let's see, let's see. Hits me up. He's like, man, bro, he's taking too long, he's not gonna come. I said, Bet, let's do it, let's lock in. So we locked in, bro, and yeah, it's been it's been up since then, you know. So we're gonna have our grand opening uh March 14th. Uh, not this Saturday, next Saturday, and that'll be from 12 to about six. Uh some come come out, man, come support. Yeah, and uh super excited for that. We've done a lot of work to the place, bro. I have before pictures, it did not look like this. It's nice in here, it's definitely a vibe in here, bro. We're super excited. We're working on getting everything stocked up in here, and yeah, and uh, I feel like this is just where uh I feel like this is where I'm meant to be right now, you know?

SPEAKER_04 1:01:44

That's good, man. That's good. So do you feel like the location will have an effect on your sales? Uh uh could so does the location have an effect on your sales maybe when you were over there?

SPEAKER_01 1:01:56

Um really nah. You know what? I I did pretty well with there. Uh I don't look at anything in a sense like if I'm on this side of town or that side of town, you know. I have my clientele base, they're they're really faithful. Uh I love new customers. I've been getting a lot of new customers lately. Wow. Uh word of mouth is great. I think uh I think if you're gonna start business and you're doing business, number one role, bro, is just do right by people. Yes, sir. Don't try to don't try to get one up on someone, don't try to scam them, don't try to do any of that because once your name goes bad, bro, it's gonna go bad. Yes, sir. So you do right by people, they're gonna they're gonna acknowledge that, they're gonna continue coming back to you, you know. And I'm real big on that, bro. Nice. Just do it right by people.

SPEAKER_04 1:02:35

So that's amazing, dude. That's good advice, man. Uh yeah, is there anything else you want to share? But we're coming up in like an hour or so.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:40

Yeah, no, for sure. Uh, I appreciate you having me on here, man. And and and one more time, we're gonna have the grand opening uh, you know, on March 14th. That'll be from 12 to 6. And we're located located at the Texas uh Arena Strength and Fitness at 5802 Woodridge. Uh we're almost right here by uh what is it, Winsymore. Um super excited to offer uh or to provide you guys with good quality products. Uh I wear a lot of hats, man. If you have any questions, whether it's business or or you want to dabble into designing or or starting your own brand, I do all of that, bro. I'm a really good uh business consultant when it comes to that. I offer free consultation. Uh I have packages that would be good for you guys if you wanted to start a brand. Uh a lot of my packages include rollout plans. So I don't just print t-shirts on uh I'm sorry, I just don't I don't print designs on t-shirts. I I go way more in debt what I do. It's a science behind it, there's a formula behind it. I've been doing it for a few years now, so I like to think that I know what I'm doing. You know, so uh and uh just if you've been thinking about starting your brand, if you have these designs in your head, or if you feel like you want to try something new, stop thinking about it and just do it. Tap in with me, DM me, uh, I'll get right back to you. Uh, and that's about it, man. You could you can reach me at uh Luperamos on my Facebook or on the IG at Choose Wisely1991. Uh for any of you guys who may need uh an ear to listen to or or uh someone to chop it up with, or if you're going through a tough time, I would like to extend this offer to you right now. Whether I know you or not, hit me up. Uh, I'll be more than willing to you know do my best to uh lead you in the right way and and uh have a conversation with you. And I want you to know right now that you mattered, that Jesus loves you, and that uh whatever you're going through, you're gonna get through it. I promise you, just keep going, man, and don't stop.

SPEAKER_04 1:04:27

Yes, sir. Great advice, man. Also, if you want to get to know Lupe a little bit more, he's also on the Respond If You Please podcast. He just had an episode. Uh also he's on the Scoop Doses podcast, Off the Kush podcast from the Right and High podcast. Uh were you were you on any other podcasts? Uh for Right and High? I know you're on.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:46

I believe that was it.

SPEAKER_04 1:04:47

All right, all right. Check them out, you guys. I'll probably uh try to leave some links down there. But stay tuned. Corpus and coffee, corpus Christi Originals, you guys. We're out. See you later.