Today we’d like to introduce you to Carlos A. Ortega
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Greetings Mi Gente! Growing up, my desire had always been to be in the small business industry, and seeing my hard-working parents was something I admired. At a young age, my father started bringing me around his successful businesses, and that’s what sparked my inspiration to one day become a small business entrepreneur myself. However, I have always been a firm believer that in life, you must earn and build your own legacy. Therefore, at a young age of 18, I enlisted in the U.S. Army and started my journey as an enlisted soldier with the career focus in Logistics. Throughout the years, I learned so many skills and practices by simply doing my day-to-day job and, of course, following the guidance of my mentors above me. People around me influenced me to step it up a notch and so I decided to enroll myself into Devry University. That’s where I was able to further my education in Small Business & Entrepreneurship at a very fast learning pace. During my active duty Service and while attending College, a couple of opportunities came along the way in the multi-level marketing business, and I decided to give it a try. The experience in multi-level marketing was very complex, and it helped me learn a lot about entrepreneurship & building the necessary ethics and skills to build your own business.
After 12 years of roaming around through various active-duty stations and overseas deployments I earned the opportunity to finally be stationed in my very own hometown of San Diego. As soon as I moved back, I was able to find stability and start focusing on my future, plans, and goals. That’s when I decided that I needed to keep pushing through with my military career since I was already more than halfway done. Due to that decision, I can now proudly say that I have been in for 18-plus years, and I’m chasing after my 20-year retirement. However, I started planting my seeds a little early in the game and made a few investments. The first investment that I made was to take the risk and open my very first brick & mortar retail business in the year of 2019, and the shop is still standing as “Soccer Shot,” which has gotten to be known as “Your One Stop Shop, For All Of Your Soccer Needs,” and that is located in Chula Vista and Online. Learning from this small business retail experience it gave me the idea of my second investment of launching my very own Gym Apparel & Accessories Brand which is named “Gainz Republic”. Due to the ongoing inflation challenges, I was only able to maintain the storefront open for 2 years until I decided to change the focus to e-commerce, and up to this date, we are still working on building the brand online.
Both businesses, Soccer Shot and Gainz Republic have been very involved with the local communities of Chula Vista and surrounding areas. We like to support local events, competitions, fund raisers, help our local elementary schools with special pricing, free raffles, sponsor local and professional athletes, you name it! Because of that involvement, I was able to run into my third business opportunity, and it took me back to my multi-level marketing era, which I had missed a lot! I am now a Herbalife Distributor, and we focus on healthy nutrition products and athlete-certified supplements.
Luckily, my 3 businesses go hand in hand and complement one another, and that’s what makes them run easily. A lot of people ask me where I find the energy and time, and I simply respond to them that we have goals and dreams to accomplish. I have always said that “Sacrifice & Hard Work always pays off.” I don’t like to make excuses; I like to work and earn what I deserve through hard work and dedication. When you’re doing something you love, it is not considered work; it is a hobby, and you simply find the way to make it happen. Last but not least my main motivation to my daily strive is that I am a proud father of 5, and my strong faith in God, I am simply blessed!
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Struggles throughout my career have been the sacrifice that I’ve put my family and kids through when I have been away for duty overseas.
Business struggles have been when Soccer Shot had to go through the pandemic Covid-19 shutdown. We were blessed enough to have survived because many other businesses had to close their doors.
Gainz Republic went through the struggle of inflation where lease increases were getting higher, and pay salaries for employees were going up every year. Not to mention, the cost of manufacturing and shipping was also increasing dramatically. Which made it difficult to maintain and operate a storefront.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Soccer Shot maintains the priority of always providing excellent customer service. Our second priority is to provide quality products at an affordable price and variety of options. We know the challenges that our local families are facing; therefore, we want to be able to connect with them and help in any way possible. Our third priority is to support the sport of Soccer, and throughout the years, the scaling growth has been amazing! Keeping our kids off the streets and having them practice a sport will really impact their lives and the community.
Gainz Republic Gym Apparel & Accessories was created with the idea of also having a brick-and-mortar storefront where people can come in and try on clothes and accessories before purchasing. A mutual priority that we share in this business is that we provide great quality products at an affordable price. There is no need to keep overpaying for something that we can match or beat the quality of current existing competitor brands. As mentioned above, due to the inflation challenges and current business trends, we had to focus to online sales. However, we like to maintain involvement with local competitions and event pop-ups, so if you follow our pages on social media, you can catch us in person at the next event soon!
My Herbalife Independent Distributorship has been a gem that I found. Being able to help people find their way to being healthy and to be able to help their personal fitness goals has been very gratifying experience. Because of this company, both my businesses have added value to our customers, and we are well-rounded in all areas. Words can’t describe how good it feels to help people to be happy with themselves and to help them step out of their comfort zones. in some cases, our dedicated hard work has helped people get out of depression, and that is all thanks to “The Coast Nutrition and Fitness” Community.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
In 5-10 years, my plan is to be retired from the military. I foresee working for myself and expanding my 3 businesses throughout San Diego County and maybe Nationwide if the opportunity arises. I want to be able to impact a lot of lives and be someone that my children can look up to. I will never retreat from a business opportunity; I still have a lot of will and desire to become better day by day. Life is too short to have limits; why not enjoy it to the fullest and make our dreams come true?
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gainzrepublic.com
- Instagram: @gainz_republic01
- Facebook: @gainzrepublic01
- Other: https://www.soccershotstore.com
