We had the good fortune of connecting with Esmeralda Casillas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Esmeralda, how do you define success?
Esmeralda Casillas Define Success:

I define success as the courage to fight for achievement of dreams and goals. It’s the attainment of prosperity, wealth, leadership and confidence to open more doors to grow and gain access to another level of financial freedom. It’s a powerful weapon to reach independence no matter how difficult the next challenge. Success is the key to happiness. Success is a bridge to strengthen motivation and aim in the right direction. Success is to climb a mountain to persist and continue to strive to overcome struggles. I see success in the many customer-relationship bonding situations. Success is having constant determination to continue fighting to become the best. I define success as the purpose to pursue progress

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
We are a small tire shop where we provide great customer service to the highest level of expertise. The name of the tire shop is Raptor Tires & Auto Care. We have been in business since 2020. What sets me apart from others is that I am a woman running a man business. I strive to give my customers the highest level of happiness, good prices and we take great care of them. We built strong relationships where they always come back for more services/repairs. I got here taking little steps. It takes time however the process has taught me to attain more experience. It has been the hardest job I ever done to lead a small business and has brought many challenges but here I am continuing fighting to succeed. I overcome many challenges by listening to my customers’ needs and making sure they leave with a smile on their face. I learned that every customer has different needs. I want the world to know we are here for them. We can fix their cars and get them the best prices possible in the tire industry. As a female I challenge myself to learn from my customers. I give everything to make them happy and satisfied.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My mother Ofelia Casillas deserves some credit and my brother Victor Rodriguez who is always pushing me to succeed. They are always supporting me as my main and most important influence to obtain successful results. They motivate me every day with a smile and they support me by always believing in me and by being there for me. I am the boss of a small tire business where I have male employees and I challenge myself to learn from them and I manage to lead the team. I have become more knowledgeable and have pursued a male career where women are sometimes not accepted but I have challenged myself and I am succeeding and escalating to a freedom level. I provide my family and employees a professional and happy environment. I dedicate my shoutout to my brother Victor aka “Don llantas” for being there for me and pushing me to never give up! I would like to thank my employee Roberto Arellano, the shop mechanic. Without him our business wouldn’t be the same, we really appreciate you, thanks again!

Website: raptortires.com

Instagram: raptor_tires

Facebook: raptortires

Yelp: raptortires14

Image Credits
Ofelia Casillas