Is there an individual at your company or organization who speaks Spanish? And I don’t mean at home or casually amongst co-workers, but someone to whom you could turn if a customer – or potential customer – were interested in learning about what it is that your company does or offers?
Is there someone on your sales, marketing or development staff who specifically targets the Hispanic communities to make contacts for new sales or to offer services or programs?
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Does your company or organization truly reflect the demographics of the audience it serves?
If your answer to any of those questions is no, then you are squandering very real business opportunities. You are doing yourself and your company or organization a huge disservice.
Consider the details of a study we reported on a couple weeks ago, one that came on the heels of a daylong event in Providence back in February – The New England Hispanic Market Summit – that delivered this very same message.
The state’s Hispanic population will increase at a 9.1 percent clip over the next 10 years – far outpacing Rhode Island’s overall population growth, according to the “Hispanic Market Report of New England.”
The report is the work of Newport-based Ethnic Business Partners, which released its findings last month. It combines demographic profiles and independent studies, along with the latest figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. It uses that material to gauge the impact and buying power of today’s – and more importantly, tomorrow’s – Hispanic population.
The conclusion is clear. That is, the Hispanic community possesses enormous buying power now – and it is only going to grow.
Vanessa Toledo, a managing director at Ethnic Business Partners, sees the report as an invaluable business tool.
“For a company planning to grow and that wants to put together a long-term strategy, this is an easy way in to understanding where that market is going,” she said.
The statistics pulled together in the report point show anyone who reads them that if reaching out to the Hispanic population is not a part of your company’s business plan – it should be.
Just a couple of the findings in the report, include the following:
•The purchasing power of the Hispanic population in New England will jump 70 percent by 2008.
• From 2005 to 2015, the Hispanic market in New England is expected to grow from 1 million to nearly 1.4 million.
• When compared to the rest of the state, Rhode Island’s Washington County has seen the sharpest growth in the Hispanic population in recent years.
Toledo recommends that you take a closer look at the Hispanic Market Report, which is filled with details about the purchasing habits of the Hispanic community. That’s sound advice.
For more information on how to get the report, visit www.ethnicbusiness.com. Companies that purchase the full report will be invited to attend a seminar reviewing key parts of the report that may be applicable to their particular industry.
So consider yourselves informed. There’s no excuse to miss out on this growing market. Just think, your main competitor may already be pursuing this business opportunity.
Latino Business Expo
Further evidence of the growing influence of the Latino community on Rhode Island’s business climate will be present later this week in Cranston. On Friday, the state’s second annual Latino Business Expo will take place from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet.
The event is expected to be even bigger than last year’s very successful inaugural event, which drew 75 exhibitors and 400 visitors.
Lt. Gov. Charles J. Fogarty, chairman of the state’s Small Business Advisory Council, points out that the growth of Latino-owned businesses in Rhode Island mirrors the doubling of the Latino community here over the past decade. As an example, Fogarty notes that according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Rhode Island’s Latino-owned businesses now number close to 2,200 and have in excess of $207 million in receipts each year.
These businesses, according to the Census, employ about 2,000 individuals and have an annual payroll of $31.2 million.
Fogarty sees the state as having a role in fostering the success of this business sector – the business expo being one way of accomplishing that goal.
“It is critical that we take steps now to help Latino businesses grow and prosper, not through merely translating an existing service delivery model into Spanish, but through targeted and tailored programs.”
To register for the expo, call Adriana Dawson at the Rhode Island Small Business Development Center at 232-6923.
