Business owner refl ects on Hispanic heritage
Wilson Herrera also talks about what it was like recovering after June protests
BY JASON COHEN
Wilson Herrera grew up
with a family of small business
owners in the Dominican
Republic. Today, the
50-year-old has followed in
their footsteps.
The Yonkers resident, who
had lived in the Bronx until
last year, has operated Computer
Settings at 2246 Grand
Concourse, for 14 years.
He recently spoke with
the Bronx Times about how
he survived the looting in
June and how he is proud to
be a Latino business owner
during National Hispanic
Heritage Month.
His life in the D.R. was no
walk in the park. Herrera
lost his father Antonio at age
2 and mother Rosa at 13. He
and his seven siblings raised
each other.
“Sometimes I ask myself
how I went to college and
went to school,” he said. “It
wasn’t easy, but thank God
nobody got into trouble.”
Herrera obtained an electrical
engineering degree in
the D.R. and hoped one day
he would be able to apply his
education to a career. He immigrated
to America in 1995
and about a decade later,
launched his own business.
“When I came here it was
a new challenge,” he recalled.
“I think every person from
other countries wants to
come to the United States.”
While he doesn’t operate a
franchise like Best Buy, Herrera
provides an important
service to the community.
He loves being known in the
Bronx and helping people fi x
their computers.
According to Herrera,
he is successful because
his store has a good reputation
and is fair with
his employees.
“I’m not someone that’s
bossing anyone around,”
he explained. “We’re just a
small company in the Bronx,
but we are not nothing.”
Due to many people quarantining
at home and the rise
in virtual learning, Herrera
said that business has been
steady since COVID-19 arrived.
While he closed for a
few weeks in the beginning of
the pandemic, many customers
BRONX TIMES R 26 EPORTER,OCTOBER 2-8, 2020 BTR
have needed repairs during
the past seven months.
However when the protests
and looting took place following
George Floyd’s murder,
he was one of the businesses
that was ransacked.
Computers and cameras
were taken and the store was
left in shambles.
Luckily, the Small Business
Services Emergency
Response Unit helped him
after the looting. In June,
the mayor announced a
grant that would give $10,000
to each business that was
impacted by the vandals.
“Thank God we received
a grant from SBS,”
Herrera commented.
Refl ecting on his Latino
heritage, he is proud
of where he is today. With
a wife Iris, two children
and a successful business,
he couldn’t ask for
much more.
“The people that I asked
for help, they ended up
working with me,” he said.
Wilson Herrera at his shop, Computer Settings
Photos courtesy of Wilson Herrera