Andrea Hermosillo is carrying out a family tradition

Name: Andrea Hermosillo

Location: Dallas, Texas

Business: Chimalma Taco Bar

What is your life motto?

Life is like a taco. Once you grab the taco, you better eat it because it gets messy. That’s life. Once you grab life the right way, you just live it and enjoy it. Live in balance. 

Tell us about Chimalma Taco Bar. How did you come up with the name and what was the inspiration?

I wanted to have something that represents the real Mexico. We eat healthy. Everything's made from scratch and everything is prepped daily for whatever you are eating. You enjoy the right portion of food and you won’t feel guilty later for whatever you ate. That's the idea of Chimalma.

When I was thinking of a name representing my food, it was Chimalma. She’s a goddess and represents women in Aztec culture. When I think of good food, I think of my mom. I want to empower women and to inspire women. That’s why I chose Chimalma. 

When did you decide you wanted to be a business owner and was your family supportive?

I’ve always wanted to have my own business. All of my family have businesses. My dad was my first cheerleader. He always used to say, “be confident” and I was capable enough to do it. He would tell me: it's your idea. It's your concept. Go for it. You're good enough.

What inspired you to start your own business?

I needed the time to be with my kids. My daughter Genesis has Cerebral Palsy, so for the first chapter of her life, she was in the hospital most of the time. I couldn’t keep a job. No one was willing to tolerate someone being in the hospital all of the time with a kid. That's why I chose to open my own business.

I'm a general contractor as well, but I always wanted to have my food because in my family, food is everything. When I was little, if you didn't feel good, my mom would say “Eat this, you’ll feel better.” That's why I always wanted to have my food here. This opportunity came, so I switched from construction to tacos because this is my passion. This is what I really enjoy. 

What advice would you give to someone wanting to start a business?

Don't think that you are not capable enough or that maybe your idea already exists. You might think: “Why is mine going to work?” It's because you're different, you're unique, and you have whatever resources you need to do it. So please, don’t overthink it. Jump for the opportunity, have a good business plan, and if you need advice, go to people that have already opened something and ask for advice. It's worse to just think and dream and not take any action. Trust in yourself. You’re good enough. 

And don’t be disappointed if someone closes the door on you. You make sure you open a window somewhere.

How do you balance running a business and taking care of yourself?

As an entrepreneur and a small business owner, we give everything to everything but us. If your energy goes away and you're not taking care of yourself—your business, your employees, your family, everybody's gonna lose the magic in you. Take care of yourself, and then everything will work perfectly fine around you.

Have a good calendar. Structure your day. Make sure 30 minutes of your day is for some cardio, yoga— whatever you love to do. I love yoga. Make sure you have fun somewhere in there, too. That’s my advice. 

How does your heritage and community influence your small business?

I’m from Jalisco. It is a small town near Guadalajara. We have a town that is artisans only—where the women make handmade art. I buy everything directly from them: the things for the bar, the glass work, the plates…everything is from them. Whatever I can do to support the economy in my town, I'm down for it.

What tools have helped you run your business?

In the beginning, I just used Excel and when I opened my general contracting business, it was kind of difficult to do everything. I didn't have control of my expenses or I didn't know for real the profit of a project. It was kind of a mix-match; everything was a mess. I searched for QuickBooks and it was so easy. 

I’m good at my business, but I didn't know how to do the bookkeeping and everything on my own. With QuickBooks, everything was automatic. For me, that was the best thing. It’s a beautiful tool. You can do everything with a click.I do payroll and I have the banking linked. Everything is accurate and I can know my profit and loss, employees, everything. 

What do you love about being a small business owner?

It’s just the biggest satisfaction for me, because I’m not doing it for the money or wealth. If I'm able to say something to you that is going to change your life in a positive way, that's my purpose in life. I'm a developer. I love developing people. My first assistant has her own business now. I love changing lives.