Meet Kendrick Parker

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kendrick Parker a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kendrick , looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?

I grew up poor and like many others I had to work for the things I wanted. If I wanted to play basketball or football at school, I had to cut grass, do odd jobs for neighbors and family, or pick and sell pecans etc. I learned that the only way to insure I was taken care of was to do I what I needed to do to get the results I wanted through working hard and doing what’s right. I learned early on that people will take advantage of kind nature so I focused on just being a good person and within the realm of being a good person and a hard worker, my work ethic helped facilitate my growth in many areas as I matured.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I’m more than just a small business owner. I’m an entrepreneur. One business I own is called Mae’s Bayou. The name of this company is in honor to my mother, Eunice Mae Parker. Our main focus is hot sauce. Currently its just my mom and I doing farmer’s markets and events as well as selling online. We are enjoying our time with this is we have 100% control. I’m also the owner of a State Farm Insurance agency. I’ve owned my agency for 11 years. I currently have a team of 3 employees. We serve both Louisiana and Texas, but our more immediate service area is Fort Worth and surrounding areas. I’m also a rental property owner. I’ve been a landlord for about 15 years. As a multiple business owner, I’m always taking the temperature of my capacity to scale my businesses as I truly believe balance is key to so many aspects of working for yourself. My main focus for scaling right now is the hot sauce company. We have two farmer’s markets that we are regulars at on the weekend. One is the Burleson Farmer’s market in Burleson Texas. It’s usually on Saturday mornings. The other is Crowley Market on Main St in Crowley Texas. This one is usually on Saturday mornings. These have been great for us because they have small town feel, but people come from all over to attend. In the evenings we can be anywhere from Epic Central in Grand Prairie Texas to partnering with a food truck at a Walmart. In the future I would like to hire more hands on deck to help facilitate attending more markets. Between the hot sauces, the t shirts, and hats, our product line up has been sustainable. We have been able to give more robust discount opportunities through bundling which has helped us grow our marketing presence.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

My background is in business management and banking so I was able to get some foundational skills straight out of college for my future. One of my mentors at the time told me their were three things you need first hand knowledge:
1. Money/finance
2. Management
3. Contracts

And to this day I tell others the same thing because every time I look back, I realize how important those things were to my success and growth at every level. Bank management gave me all three. I was a bank manager for almost 7 years. I don’t tell folks to go into bank, but I do tell them to get heavily into their finances. Focus on learning about investing and how money moves. If possible, get into a manager or leadership position and pay attention to every agreement they can come across from employment contracts to promissory notes. Find mentors in those spaces who will share knowledge and opportunities with them.

Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?

The most impactful thing I received from my mom and dad and family in general is they loved me. I have never not felt loved. This has enable me to focus other things I needed from life and those I spend my time with. I’ve never had to chase love. It’s always found me and because I grew up with it, I know how to recognize when its real and what I need. Its takes strength to love as well as to be loved and both require self awareness and acknowledging that its needed while appreciating when it is there.

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