Connect
To Top

Meet Flora Gabrielyan of Pepper Mexican Grill & World Financial Group in Van Nuys & Glendale

Avatar photo

Today we’d like to introduce you to Flora Gabrielyan.

Flora, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
First, I want to thank VoyageLA for this opportunity. I started my entrepreneur career at the age of 21. I went from a college graduate with a bachelor’s in Criminal Justice to a business owner overnight. I kept applying to a bunch of county jobs and they kept turning me down because I didn’t have the experience. I met this man who advised me to fly to Cleveland to learn the auction business and he was willing to help me start my own business.

So, I took the opportunity to fly to Cleveland for 48 hours learned the whole business then flew back to LA and ended up opening up a big warehouse in West Covina. My business was, restaurants who would go out of business, I would take their equipment on consignment and auction it off for them. Everything was online. During this time, I was meeting with a lot of restaurant owners, and I would question them on why they were shutting down and I would take all their advices and suggestions on what not to do in the future. The plan was that one day I would open up my own restaurant.  Not too long after that, I ended up opening my own restaurant in the valley called Pepper Mexican Grill. I have been in business since February 2015.

After a couple of years in the restaurant business, my mom ended up joining World Financial Group. In the beginning, I was super negative, but shortly after that within 11 months in business, my mom had crossed over her 6-figure income part-time. Seeing her happy, always traveling with the company, and living stress-free, I ended up following in her footsteps and duplicating her success within the same time frame. Now we are in over 13 states, coaching and mentoring millennials on financial literacy and creating a better life with the same opportunity that was handed to me. 

The main reason why I have a passion for what I do is because, I saw the pattern with college students graduating with no plan for the future. Their “dream job” turns into something totally different from what they graduated and got their degree in. Second the amount of loans they take out for that degree, with interest rates being so high, they will be paying those loans back for the rest of their life. An average bachelor’s degree in LA is paying 60-80K a year, and we know in California you cannot survive with that type of salary, especially if you have loans you have to pay back or you are already starting a family. I realized schools don’t teach financial literacy for a reason, they want the people to work paycheck to paycheck and pay taxes. To me, that is not the “American Dream” lifestyle. So, providing free financial literacy and hosting seminars for the community was big to me, because no one is knocking the door of a middle class, and educating them for free on how to save, grow and protect their money. 

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Running 2 businesses at the same time, it’s never a smooth road. Matter fact, if you study any successful entrepreneur, none of them had a smooth ride to the top. My first year in the restaurant business, I didn’t make a dime, but it paid its expenses and I was there open to close. I ended up getting sued 6 times during this period, by the person who leased the place to me, who later we found out wasn’t even the owner of the building and was just a sub-lessor. I had to spend a lot of money towards lawyer fees. One lawyer took 15k and she didn’t even go to court for me. Then I ended up finding the best lawyer Joseph Kellener, and he helped me so much, until today I use him for any business decision. Within the past five years, my restaurant got broken into 6 times, so, I had to spend more money to replace and repair the place. I couldn’t file a claim with my insurance all 6 times, so money out of my pocket had to be put in to fix the damages. My insurance ended up going sky high because of this…

In the financial business, I had a lot of people doubt me, talk behind my back, try to take me out of my game. But I never let anyone’s opinion determine the direction of my life. My mom is basically my mentor, my assistant, my everything. With her by my side and having the best team in the company, I know my future is bright and any obstacle that comes my way, I will overcome.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Pepper Mexican Grill & World Financial Group – what should we know?
As a company, I love how we separate ourselves from the traditional financial industries and we work with all walks of life. World Financial Group is known for giving solutions to people and guiding them through the proper financial plan for their family based on their budget and end goals. What I love about this company most is that its equal opportunity for males and females. We are known to have the #1 female producing advisors. This is huge especially because when you look at the corporate world males always make more money than females but no one knows why. The main reason as to why I’m so passionate about what I do, is because I love to help people. To be able to put people in position to make money and have their lives changed for the better because of you, is the greatest gift of all.

Any shout outs? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Like I mentioned earlier my mom is my biggest cheerleader, alongside my dad and brother. Second, I would say my amazing team because together we can achieve more. They are all hungry individuals who want to change their life for the better and they are all go-getters. I feel like I have my own Championship team with the individuals in my organization. We all win and celebrate each other’s success and push one another to bring the best out of each individual who steps foot into our organization. Lastly coming into the business, Jack and Karina Akopikyan started mentoring my mom and I. They believed in us, when everyone else was doubting us. They put their heart and soul into our life, and changed my family’s life forever.  So, I appreciate them for everything they have done and continue to do. Behind every successful person, there is a mentor who believes and coaches you through it all and without a mentor, you can’t get far in life. Once you realize that, your whole life changes. 

Contact Info:

Suggest a story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.

Related Items

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More in