Patricia Navarro-Issel was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, and shortly after made her way to the United States with her family. Growing up with two parents who didn’t speak English, she remembers stepping in as the family translator. For Patricia, like many first-or-second-generation Americans, this experience is quite common.
Speaking during IFA’s Open for Opportunities Roadshow in Las Vegas, Patricia shared her story about how she worked her way from a part-time employee to the owner and operator of five successful McDonald’s franchise businesses.
Patricia worked at McDonald’s in high school and upon receiving her diploma she enrolled in McDonald’s Hamburger University to further her career. As a single mother at 17 years old, Patricia worked tirelessly to advance her career. She also participated in McDonald’s Archways to Opportunity, a training program for employees, managers, and owner-operators. With the culmination of her hard work and McDonald’s training programs, she bought her first two franchises in Las Vegas in 2008.
In her first couple years of ownership, despite the Great Recession, Patricia was able to increase sales by $300,000. Patricia says that McDonald’s training courses taught her to remember the core elements of the service she was providing—taking care of customers with fast and quality service and providing a nice place to eat.
Patricia went on to open several more stores and has now made it her mission to encourage others to pursue their dreams.
When Patricia’s son graduated from high school a few years ago, she found out there was a second graduation offered to Hispanic students in the Greater Las Vegas community through the Hispanic Baccalaureate program. She was so touched by this special ceremony that the following year McDonald’s sponsored the event and Patricia was the keynote speaker. She spoke of the success she has had through entrepreneurship, inspiring the next generation of Hispanic professionals to follow their dreams. .
Whether it’s owning and operating a franchise location or serving her community through philanthropy, Patricia Navarro-Issel is Open for Opportunity.
