In America, we are told that we can become anything we want if we work hard at it. Many come to this country to achieve their dreams. For Chimmy Power, he has been able to seize the opportunity to become a proud business owner of an up and coming transportation service called GLiDE. Power’s preparation to be a business owner started long ago in his home country of Nigeria.
For the first 11 years of his life, Power was raised in Nigeria with his three other siblings. The Nigerian culture taught him many important values which included caring for your family. His father was in the United States at the time, working to help move his family out the country. Power’s mother, who was a teacher, ran a strict household, making sure her children learned the value of hard work.
Laying the foundation to become responsible in life, Power had extra responsibility. Since he was one of the oldest siblings and his father not being present, he was the man of the house. This helped him become more independent at a young age but it would pay off in the long term.
“I had to learn a lot of life essentials at a young age. I started cooking when I was 8 years old. Most things that I can do now, I either learned from watching, teaching myself or verbal instructions with few illustrations. My upbringing made me an independent individual at a very young age”, said Power.
When his father was able to move the entire family to the United States, they settled in Oakland, CA. Even though Chimmy was able to enjoy playing sports and engaging in childhood activities, he still was able to learn a new skill through his father: running a business. He ran a home care business that catered toward the homeless and disabled. Seeing his father run a successful business sparked an interest in Power.
“I was always intrigued by business. I always wanted to own several companies I could call my own,” said Power. “I learned the dedication and responsibilities of owning a business. I also saw the financial benefits ownership can bring to a family.”
After Power graduated high school, he moved to Sacramento and would find himself attending Sacramento State University not too long after. Despite receiving a college education and already having a A.A degree, Power felt the need to take a break because he felt school was not for him and did not want to be in debt from school loans. Already knowing what he wanted to do in life Power did not feel a college classroom was needed to accomplish his goals.
“They don’t teach us the fundamentals we need in life. They don’t teach you how to be an adult, how to be a family man, how to be responsible, how to be effective in your community”, said Power.
Having a plan to be successful in the business world was something Power knew that college could not provide for him at the moment. His entrepreneur mindset was focused on a big goal that he was going to master.
As he put his plan in motion, Power was able to create a business platform that he knew was going to be lucrative and important for the future: transportation. With the help of his former business partner and mentor Evans Akpo, the evolution of GLiDE had taken off. To make GLiDE distinguish itself from the competition, Power’s plan is to make the business include all forms of transportation.
“We provide more than three types of transportation services. From Non-Emergency medical transportation, to luxury transportation to regular transportation service. The sole goal of GLIDE RIDE is to become the cornerstone of the transportation business”, said Power.
The future of GLiDE is bright and working to break out with new innovations. From a young boy in Nigeria looking after his younger siblings to running his own business, Power is living a dream.
To learn more about Chimmy and GLiDE visit irideglide.com.
Black SOULutions 