George Verdugo is an investor in startups and real estate who proudly supports initiatives in the Hispanic community. George owns and operates an amazing portfolio of over 3,000 names, including Spanish Dot Coms: “Rent To Own” “For Sale By Owner”, “Owner Finance”, “Real Estate Properties”, “Cheap Houses”, “Houses For Sale” and many more!
What have you found to be the biggest challenge as a minority in your field?
I feel the biggest challenge is getting support from the community because the Latino culture is so far behind the understanding on how important domain names are for their businesses and startups. I own some iconic cultural domains like EastLA.com, BoyleHeights.com, Whittierblvd.com and many other internet assets and none of the Latino influencers or community leaders and Latino writers in the Los Angeles area who focus on the L.A. culture projects never reach out to discuss possible ventures. I think that’s due to alack of understanding how powerful domain names are to their brands and platforms.
What motivates you to keep pursuing your dreams?
What keeps me motivated is my family and my brother. They are the only people that have seen my struggles in this journey and have continued to stand behind my dreams. My vision to succeed is another key factor in motivating me to continually pursue my dreams.
What advice would you give to others that want to pursue their passion?
My advice is to believe in what you are doing!! Speak positive about what you’re pursuing. Never let anyone get you down!! Believe me as a entrepreneur, you will rarely get support from your extended family, friends and peers. You have to dig deep to fulfill your dreams because you will go through challenging times that will test your dreams and passions. Let’s say it doesn’t work out, go to the next passion and keep pushing until you accomplish your goal! NEVER GIVE UP!
What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as an entrepreneur that would you like to share with others?
In 2011 we were living paycheck to paycheck struggling to make. I had an idea and even though we didn’t really have the money to spare, I decided to purchase CasasBaratas.com.
After that purchase, the whole dynamics of our financial situation changed. We were no longer having to live paycheck to paycheck. Seeing the how a domain name changed our business & financial situations, I came to understand how powerful an exact match domain name can be. It totally changed our lives & we are still seeing the benefits from that domain purchase. Since then, I have launched www.Hotels.club. It’s a powerful platform to book cheap hotels worldwide. I’m currently working on a NFT project with my partner, The Awesome Syd White, a graphic designer out of Australia. We are working on www.BlazePunks.io a cannabis NFT project that is taking off on opensea.io blockchain. Domains have totally changed my life & I’m thankful I had enough drive to take the risks. It’s been very rewarding. If I could encourage you or give you a word of advice, don’t be afraid to take risks.
Who was your biggest influence that inspires you to pursue your dreams in this country?
My Mother & Father (RIP). They were both entrepreneurs. I learned so much from them on the daily grind. They taught me to keep pushing for your dreams! Also I wanted to mention my great friend Colin Campbell, Founder of The .Club domain extension and the powerful online pet store Paw.com. Colin’s example-ship, availability & encouragement have been epic for me in trying times of my entrepreneur journey. Colin has always believed in me and would tell me you are going to make it and would speak big over my life!! I also appreciate many others in the domain space who are the most powerful and smartest people on the planet.
I want to say thank you to the domain industry. Without the internet community, I wouldn’t be in this position in life! GRACIAS
To learn more about George and connect with him, you can find him on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/george-verdugo-16b9742a/
or visit some of his domains, including:
OldiesButGoodies.com
ChicanoPower.com
AyeQueRico.com
EastLA.com
BorninEastLA.com
WhittierBlvd.com
BoyleHeights.com
PorVida.com
ConSafos.com
BarrioVida.com
ChicanoBikers.com
Chankla.com
LowRida.com
EastLos.com
CervezaDelivery.com
CholoBikes.com
MiVidaLoca.com
ChicanoVille.com
Suavecitos.com
Marijuanas.com
TacosTuesday.com
MexicanSodas.com
