Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeremiah Essmyer.
Hi Jeremiah, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born in St. Louis City Hospital before it was closed and lived in a 3rd story flat off Virginia until school age. We moved to Ware, MO after that and I attended Grandview R-II until graduating in 2000. We were poor, but I was happily unaware of what that meant. I recall going into a grocery store as a young-boy to buy a single plum with food stamps so we could use the change for gas to get around for the day. In hindsight, that’s certainly just scraping by, but growing up it was just one adventure after another. I’m sure my resourcefulness comes from my childhood.
I gravitated towards leadership my entire life and it began at Grandview through academia and sports. I was president of my class, participated in numerous clubs, offered student assistance for at-risk youth through PALS, and was all conference Linebacker and Tight-End. I was awarded an academic scholarship to Truman State where I met the love of my life and current wife of now 22 years. At Truman I discovered my passion was in the culinary arts while cooking at the local Shrine club. It wasn’t just fun to cook, I was outstanding at it. I decided to lean into my gift and transferred to Missouri State University where I enrolled for Hospitality and Restaurant administration degree. It didn’t take long before I realized that I’d be working nights, weekends, and holidays the rest of my life as a Chef or Restaurant owner. That wasn’t the life I envisioned for myself and focused entirely on lodging and hotels after my degree. I began with Starwood Hotels at the Sheraton Convention Center in Overland Park, KS where I became a six-sigma green-belt and began cutting my teeth in hotels. In 2007 I was able to move back to the St. Louis area and managed large hotels in Downtown St. Louis for over a decade. Great properties like Hilton at the Ballpark and St. Louis Union Station Hotel; where I won the properties first Connie Award under my leadership in 2015.
Managing, renovating, and transforming hotels in the St. Louis region was my first career and I became very good at it. I was a leader at over 10 St. Louis hotels prior to the industry’s reset in 2020-2021. Like many others, I learned that no amount of talent, education, or loyalty to a company would keep you safe when times got tough and I was thrown away and replaced with a younger, more affordable version of myself. To be discarded was a wake-up call that I can never trust an employer to do what’s right by my family and I elected to work for myself. We had to sell our home, rent for two years near Old-Town Florissant while we welcomed my third child into the world all while I positioned myself for something better.
After careful consideration of what a pandemic could do, review of business models, and reflecting on the skills that I had acquired running hotels for decades It seemed opening an Insurance Agency was an affordable way to start a business of my own. In November of 2021 the Essmyer Agency opened its doors in Chesterfield, MO with only months of preparation in my new Industry. There wasn’t money to buy into the Industry, I had to start from scratch; one policy at a time and each policy would make me anywhere from $15 to $250. No salary, no base, no safety-net, no prior insurance experience. Nothing but the unknown and risk lay ahead of me. At home, three children under the age of 5, and the fatherly pressure to provide a life for them better than my own. For anyone in a similar position there are just a few words that race/repeat in your mind and for me those words were, “I can’t fail”. I’ve attended and taught leadership skill training for years and the common thread often comes down to attitude. My attitude was sound; rock-solid. “I won’t fail”, “I can’t fail”, “failure isn’t an option” and so every day I cold-called Missouri Homeowners. I networked, joined groups, advertised where I could afford, and GRINDED through 2022. I was the new-agent of the year in my district and finished in the top 10% of all Farmers Insurance Agents in the Nation my first year. I became a student of my new industry and in a short time had others calling me for advice and guidance. A new industry, but quickly became a guru of my trade for a second time.
It’s July 2026 now and the Essmyer Agency has won numerous awards and achievements. I can still recall that my first ever Home Policy; written for a family-member in July of 2021 while I was still in training with Farmers Insurance. (boy I messed that policy up and had to re-write it three times). That client is still with me along with over 2,000 more clients I made these past five years. We have a new home in Saint Charles, MO and my children love their school and friends. I have a 15 minute commute to my office and an excellent team helping me bring the same 5-star service I taught at Hilton to the insurance industry. Much of my success in Insurance comes from the skills I acquired running high-end hotels and hundreds of employees.
The roads we travel are so long you can’t ever see the whole picture, but towards the end you start to realize it can all come together with hard-work and the right attitude.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Never a smooth road, but obstacles are always learning opportunities and opportunities to grow. Setbacks are as common as thunderstorms and can’t be avoided. With positivity and effort the storms will pass quickly.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Now I specialize in asset protection through Property and Casualty Insurance. I split my time writing between Personal lines like Homes, Autos, Life insurance and Commercial Lines like Workers Compensation, General Liability, and Commercial Property policies. I’m known for my service-first style of being quick to respond and available for my clients. My willingness to flex my approach to meet my clients where/how they like to do business is one thing that sets me apart. Another is my focus on education with my clients. As I teach my clients more about insurance they come to understand why changes are made and how it benefits them it the end.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
It’s often hard to find a mentor outside your own Industry. Always begin with your own office or company to find your mentor. They will find a way to create time for you if they see it will somehow benefit your organization. Also know that any mentor has only so much they can share to help you grow so always be looking for the next one to be a positive influence in your career.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://agents.farmers.com/mo/lake-saint-louis/jeremiah-essmyer/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/essmyeragency/
