By: Priya Thoppil & Heidi Garcia
Rogers’ banking journey began at age 18 at NationsBank (now known as Bank of America), where his sister had gotten him an interview. Initially, he hadn’t wanted to go into banking, but took the interview and got the job. He got the job as a teller and continued working from there.
Today, Rogers works at Cadence Bank as the commercial relationship manager and owns two businesses: a photo booth business and a commercial cleaning move-out business. He said his primary goal for starting these businesses was to maximize his income for his family in the long term, and his freedom, so he no longer will have to work a 9-5 in the future.
In 2006, Rogers acquired a trucking company and 18-wheelers to haul agriculture, mainly in Corpus Christi. Most businesses are cyclical, meaning they are seasonal, and in agriculture, there is planting to harvest.
“This operates about 7 months out of any 12-month calendar year, to which you have to offset your business by finding other loads to carry,” Rogers said.
What he would do in those cases was have things called reefer vans and dry vans. So they had refrigerator trucks, and haul general freight interstate throughout the US.
With plans of not remaining in banking for the rest of his life, Rogers said his mom and pop businesses he owns will generate enough income to step down from the 9-to-5.
“I will leverage a portion of that income into developing either rentals or ADU’s primarily in South Texas,” he said. “I am also currently researching to open up a string of laundromats as well.”
Rogers used to work with the CDFI People Fund, where he had come across EGBI, because they would service with technical assistance to some of the clients that they could not in instances of overflow.
“When there were classes like this based on marketing and business, cash flow management, taxes, even if our classes were full, then we would send our individuals and clientele over to EGBI, and they did a great job,” he said.
Rogers said he loves the fact that EGBI helps minorities.
“I love the passion of everyone that works for the organization, and I look forward to their growth and success in the future.”