Meet Rafael Huerta | Teacher & Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rafael Huerta and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rafael, can you share the most important lesson you’ve learned over the course of your career?
In both my professional career and business career, the most important lesson I have learned is to have a growth mindset. Having a growth mindset means to use the failures and successes in order to continuously improve. When I first started 817 Vintage Hype, I was a math teacher. As a teacher, I constantly had to reflect on my teaching practice in order to grow and give my students the best instruction possible. This led me to receive the Teacher of The Year Award for my school and district. Similarly, as I started my vintage reselling journey I constantly reflected on how I could improve my social media presence and improve my sales. To do this I had to use a growth mindset and that meant I had to put my ego to the side in order to grow my business. At the beginning, to grow my business I started selling vintage clothes by doing pop-ups at events like The DFW Vintage Swap Meet, barber shops, beauty salons, parties, stores, selling out of my house, and even pulling up to tail gate parties at the Dallas Cowboys stadium. The growth mindset attitude led me to open up my store and in the first year of being open it received The Best of Fort Worth Award.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
817 Vintage Hype is a place where you can buy vintage clothing and experience nostalgia from 80’s, 90’s and early 2000’s through clothes. What sets us apart from others is the journey of 817 Vintage Hype and how much love and support we receive from the Fort Worth community. Where 817 Vintage Hype is today has not been easy but it has been fun. The first year in business, I could only have the store open late night on Friday 6-8pm, Saturday 12-6 and Sunday 12-5 because I worked full time as a teacher. For that reason, for an entire year, I literally worked 7 days a week. Monday through Friday, I worked teaching and then Friday at night and on the weekend I worked the store. This was a huge sacrifice for not just myself but my family as well. To keep the store stocked with fresh inventory I had to use anytime I had off or after work to go thrifting. There were days that I would go to several thrifts after work and find only a few items. My days consisted of teaching 7am-4pm and thrifting 4-8pm on a daily basis. Through all these challenges, I have learned that in order to run a successful business you have to have grit and a family that understands/supports your goals. Now that I have my business running and growing, I have been able to bring in some people in to help it grow even more. Special shoutout to my guys Jay, Jesus, and Mark for linking up with me and helping me grow the business. Special shoutout to my employees Ramiro and Ava for being a crucial part of the success of the business.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
First place to visit in Fort Worth would definitely have to be 817 Vintage Hype for all your vintage and graphic t-shirt needs. Then make your way down the street to Tacos San Andres for some Mexican-style street tacos. For desert go down the street again and get some ice-cream at Melt. Pick up some delicious baked goods at Stir Crazy. Have drinks/cocktails at Proper. Dinner at Tinies with a beautiful view of downtown Fort Worth. End the week with brunch at Brewed or Fixture.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Big shoutout to my wife Julieta for always pushing me to take risks. For being there for me through all my failures. For being there for me when I have any sort of accomplishment big or small. You are always there helping, cheering, and being a part of why I have accomplished anything in life. Shoutout to you, Julieta. Te amo.

Website: www.817vintagehype.com
Instagram: @817vintagehype
Twitter: @817vintagehype
Facebook: 817 Vintage Hype