This week, thousands of Latino business leaders gathered in Salt Lake City, Utah for the annual convention hosted by the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC). Although Utah is not generally thought of as a hotbed for Latino communities and businesses, President and CEO of USHCC, Javier Palomarez noted that the choice to host the convention in Utah was meant to underscore the fact that the state mirrors the booming growth of Hispanic-owned businesses and communities occurring throughout the entire country.
Palomarez reminded attendees that Utah is a perfect example of a state that has capitalized on the entrepreneurial spirit of the Latino community and businesses have blossomed as a result. “It’s indicative of an economy that is very deliberately and very strategically taking advantage of small business growth, immigrant-owned small businesses and ensuring that it continues,” said Palomarez.
During the conference, USHCC unveiled a new study conducted by Geoscape, a leading business intelligence provider, which found that by the end of 2014, Hispanic-owned businesses are projected to grow more than twice the rate of any other ethnicity by 3.22 million. The revenues of these thriving new businesses are expected to surpass $486 billion, according to the study.
High profile speakers such as, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, U.S. Small Business Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro all emphasized that the U.S. thrives when Latino businesses and communities thrive. Palomarez told attendees, “As a community we have a responsibility to show the rest of the nation we are not a historical aberration, that we are a critical, growing element that is contributing and growing in all areas of this nation…Not just California, not just San Antonio.”
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