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Rolando Enriquez seized a business opportunity in the new trends of food sales and culinary experiences – and he inspired others to do the same in northwest Arkansas. The vision he turned into reality is the Centerton Food Trucks Park in Centerton.

After living in Texas for a time, Enriquez came to Arkansas by way of Russellville in 2010 to support his older brother with the opening of a Mexican restaurant. They ran it for six years while Enriquez was studying business administration at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville. He decided to stay, and settled in Rogers.

After finishing his studies and being bilingual, he worked for two years in a Walmart store in the human resources area, where he was able to help the people he hired understand and adapt to the work.

“I always helped people mainly with the language barrier, welcoming them and providing guidance on Walmart business rules and culture. I liked being their support and guide that they could count on,” Enriquez said.

Years later, seeking a higher-paying job Enriquez applied for a position in Walmart’s corporate office and was accepted in the company’s real estate business. He said the job taught him an overview of the real estate industry.

Enriquez began to have an interest in acquiring properties or land opportunities of his own. That’s how he was able to purchase a well-located lot on one of the main streets of the city of Centerton which now houses his food truck park concept.

Enriquez said the idea of starting his own business came little by little. It all came together with a literal knock on his door. The first interested people were a couple of entrepreneurial oriental women looking for a place to park their Oriental-themed food truck and they asked Enriquez if he could rent a space to them on his land in Certenton. From there, the interest grew in having more food trucks parked on the land and turning this opportunity into an innovative business venture.

Starting the park was not easy since the city required that the installations of water pipes, drainage, electricity and sewage services be carried out by professional contractors and hiring an engineer was very expensive.

“I had access to a bank loan to start the project, but the services of the engineer to manage the project were very expensive so I asked the city authorities if I could take care of the project by hiring companies with their licenses and permits,” said EnriquezRolando. “They authorized me to do it, and that’s how I was able to start the park at a more affordable cost. That’s how Centerton Food Trucks Park was founded.”

Meanwhile, he realized that there were people who wanted to start a business but they did not have the money to buy a food truck. So, he also took the opportunity of purchasing trucks to rent to entrepreneurs interested in selling food and also helping them with their procedures, permits and plans to organize the sale of food.

Enriquez has helped several families start selling food with the day-to-day responsibilities of permits and inspections, purchasing supplies, preparation work, selling food and advertising.

“Most people know the effort involved in running a food truck but some of them have no idea what to do,” explained Enriquez.

“I try to inform them and explain to them how it works and what they can expect from starting up in this business.”

Centerton Food Trucks Park was named Emerging Business of the Year in the 2023 by Arkansas Latino Business Awards . It also won a silver medal in the Best of the Best awards by a local media as the best park in northwest Arkansas.

The park now has six food trucks and he plans to double the size of the park in its second phase to offer more spaces to entrepreneurs who want to start a business.

“If you have an entrepreneurial idea, don’t be afraid to make your dream come true,” said Enriquez.

"Plan and calculate, but take the risk of starting a business."