Today we’d like to introduce you to Francisco Corona.
Francisco, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was a full time student a couple of years back at UH Main Campus, I was majoring in Kinesiology Sport Management; however, I had to drop out in order to dedicate my full time and energy to work and save money to open my business. In order to make ends meet, I’ve been bartending and managing different restaurants/night clubs. In actuality, this is how I started saving money to start the business of WU Fighters World. Since I can remember I have always been involved in martial arts; I have been practicing and competing in martial arts all my life since I was 4 years old, so this is truly my passion. Several years back I decided to take the risk in opening a store to somehow be in the game, it has always been my dream, so why not start something that I love. Like many businesses I started very small; 2 or 3 boxes of gear arranged neatly in the trunk of my car and going from gym to gym offering the gear. After which the business moved from the trunk of the car to a small 8×5 self-storage unit….I was moving up in the entrepreneurial world. The location was not easy to find; therefore, I had to continue my door to door knocking in order to sell. I must have moved two or three more times, each time making it more accessible to the client until we found the perfect little nook in the Galleria area that has housed WU Fighters World for the past 3 years.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think it’s never a smooth road for small and new business owners to start their own business, or at least it wasn’t me. This is a very niche market with many competitors, most of which are online stores.
To be quite honest, there’s been couple of times that I almost shut down the doors because I had no sales or not enough sales to even pay the rent. I think, just like in life, we learn from our mistakes, roll with the punches and simply keep moving forward.
WU Fighters World – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Wu Fighter’s World is a mixed martial arts supply store. It’s a place for those that train in all kinds of Martial Arts and MMA. You can get all kinds of gear and accessories from boxing gloves to MMA shorts, Muay Thai shorts, Gis, Karate gear, mouth guards and everything you need to train. If you are more of a fan we also have some cool stuff for you. We produce our own brand WU Pro Fighting Gear for the everyday enthusiast; we carry top brands like Cleto Reyes, Venum, Ringside, BadBoy, Everlast, Damage Control, Revgear, Zepol and way more cool stuff.
In my humble opinion, I think what sets us apart from our competitors is that fact that we can relate to the up and coming fighters, those who have nothing but a dream. Being brought up in the Mixed Martial Art world, I know how hard it is for some fighters to get gear or pay for their medicals before a fight; therefore, I am very proud to be able to provide support and sponsorship to fighters in the community.
Ultimately, my main goal is to provide a local place for the Martial Art community to be able to stop by for anything they need. Sometimes people stop by to simply chat about last week’s UFC fight or boxing fight, and I love and welcome that. Houston is a main hub for many things and MMA, Muay Thai, and Boxing is definitely one of those things that are growing exponentially. More and more fighters are emerging as well as events all over the city and we want to be here to support them and be a part of their lives.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I am very proud of WU Fighters World. I am especially proud of how small we started and where we are now. I am honored to be able to help fighters achieved their goals and the fact that they trust our name and reputation. Most importantly I am very proud to be part of the Houston Mixed Martial Arts community because without its’ support, WU Fighters World would not exist.
Contact Info:
- Address: 6423 RICHMOND AVE STE S Houston Texas 77057
- Website: www.wufightersworld.com
- Phone: 281-888-6556
- Email: wu-mma@usa.com
- Instagram: @wufightersworld
- Facebook: @wufightersworld
- Twitter: @WuMMA1
- Yelp: WU Fighters World
- Other: Snapchat @wufightersworld
Image Credit:
Hosanna Rull-IRull Fotos and Tommy Lakes-Lakes Creates
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