Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabriel Zarate.
Hi Gabriel, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I came to the US from Colombia in 2001; my grandmother and my aunt moved to the US around 60 years ago; I first come to their house in Bethesda, I didn’t really know what to expect at the beginning, but it wasn’t easy! I thought I knew English because I went to a bilingual high school, but quickly realized I had not idea of the language lol I had a couple of temporary jobs before I bump into a friend from high school that I haven’t seen in years, I didn’t even knew he was leaving here, I was walking around Bethesda and he was crossing the same street! We chat, I told him I was looking for a job; the next day he set up an interview at the Honda dealership he used to work and I started working there the day after; I worked at the dealership for 4-5 years, they helped me with a college tuition for me to study English, made great friends and learn a lot. In 2006 I meet the RG Insurance sales manager at the time Erin at a happy hour she asked me if I was interested in an insurance sales position; Rg was opening an office in Wheaton to tap into the Hispanic market, I did and that decision changed my life, I become #1 sales associate for the company we represent at the time, we grew our Wheaton office from two to ten agents, RG provided me and everyone in the agency the support we need to be successful, John Rogers our agency president is an amazing mentor and leader for all of us. When his partner Frank Goldbach retired, they gave us Josh Lansberg, Lori Goldbach, and me the opportunity to become partners. We have plans to continue growing as one of the fastest insurance agencies in the Mid-Atlantic in partnership with the top insurance carriers in the country.
None of this would of being possible without Monica my wife, she keeps me on my toes lol she is amazingly beautiful! We have two wonderful daughters Sofia and Camila; they are our biggest blessing.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I will say the biggest was the language at the beginning, sometimes as business owner is difficult to disconnect, but overall, it’s been great!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
RG Insurance was formed in 2001, opening the first satellite office in Baltimore City in partnership with Nationwide Insurance. This partnership proved to be extremely successful and set the stage for RG’s explosive growth through market diversification and penetration.
RG Insurance has opened 6 office locations and completed 7 agency acquisitions, becoming one of the fastest-growing agencies in the Mid-Atlantic Region.
RG Insurance is now a leader in the insurance brokerage community, representing many top insurance carriers and providing industry-leading professional insurance services.
I do Business Development for the agency, including marketing strategy; since I was an agent myself, I have the market and product knowledge that I think makes a different impact in our approach to create and maintain business relationships, as an agency we specialize in business insurance approximately 80% of our growth is thought that channel, we like to add value to our business partners organizations, we partner with multiple chambers of commerce, real estate, and mortgage associations, we are big on community outreach, we love local events, support different foundations, we are just engage and give back to our clients and communities by adding value.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
You took me back to my childhood lol I always love sports, I played them all, but soccer is my passion; I played professional and my u17 country team; I was always outgoing, like to have friends, be out have fun in general.
My favorite soccer team is the Real Madrid, but football is taking over pretty fast! We are a huge Ravens fans; we go to the games, wear the swag, and my daughters know the schedule, players, statistics; we are on it!
We love to travel, boating, and serve others!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rginsurance.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rginsurance/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/randginsurance/?modal=focused_switcher_dialog
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVMjK2GK7IZzlza33xMcwiA
