From Dream to Reality: How One Client Is Growing His Kansas City Restaurants

Originally published on U.S. Bank company blog

From working in sales in Mexico to being in construction in the Kansas City area, every job Jose Barrios has held has propelled him closer to his dream of opening his own restaurant.

“If you don’t have a dream, you don’t have a purpose,” said Barrios, who, with his wife, owns Royal Biscuit, a breakfast hotspot in Blue Springs, Missouri. “I visited a couple of different banks, but they didn’t guide me. They just told me, ‘You need this’ and that’s it.”

That’s where Jessica Jordan came in, prepared to support Barrios and provide options as he grew his business. Barrios was one of Jordan’s first customers as branch manager at the U.S. Bank Blue Springs North location outside of Kansas City. Over the years, Jordan and her team helped Barrios with everything from consumer checking accounts for Barrios’ employees to planning the expansion of his business.

“I was looking for a building to create another Royal Biscuit,” Barrios said. “Instead, I got the opportunity to buy a creamery. So, I was like, ‘Why not?’ It's something new, and it’s supporting community.”

Barrios purchased Odessa Creamery, about 30 minutes from Royal Biscuit, which dishes up ice cream cones and hamburgers in Odessa. Prior to Barrios purchasing the business, the creamery had been open for more than 50 years.

“We were his very first stop to get his new business account set up, as well as establish credit card processing for the creamery through U.S. Bank’s Elavon,” Jordan said. “He has this saying that he makes friends, not customers. That's how we feel every time that he walks into the building. We are not only his bankers, but we are his friends here to help them every step of the way.”

To get where he is today, Barrios pointed at his past and the people who have supported him. For years, he worked two jobs – starting at 5 a.m. and ending at 10 p.m. Fast food and construction, as well as working at a breakfast and Mexican restaurant, were on his resumé before taking the plunge and opening Royal Biscuit.

“I really love being able to support business owners like Jose,” said Steve Sickmeyer, the Small Business Banking specialist who works with Barrios. “Having that opportunity to watch the business grow, you get to see the community begin to flourish. You get to see people get energized and get to come together to bring unity in our communities.”

Barrios’ drive to grow his businesses is ongoing, he said, and he is actively looking to open a second Royal Biscuit location.

“(U.S. Bank) helped me to keep growing,” Barrios said. “You can’t do anything by yourself. It takes a community of support to find success, to take care of people and to make dreams real.”