Next generation of entrepreneurs climbs ladder

Finees Mendez grew up watching his father become the second Latino in the state to earn a master-electrician license, and then go on to start his own business, Victor General Electric.
Mendez, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic who moved to Rhode Island with his family when he was 9 years old, was inspired to go to college and become an entrepreneur himself.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and math from the University of Rhode Island, Mendez joined friends in starting RI Marketing & Advertising in 2001.
Since then, Mendez, 26, has become the sole owner and marketing director of the six-employee company. He has shifted the company’s focus from printing and graphic design to supplying marketing packages for small businesses, including printed material, Web design, public relations, branding and graphic design.
Mendez’ entrepreneurial success is hardly the exception in the Latino community, says Tomas Avila, Latino business developer at the R.I. Small Business Development Center. He’s seen an increase in the use of RISBDC services to start or improve businesses by Latinos whose parents were immigrants.
Most of the entrepreneurs have either started or are thinking of starting professional-service firms in areas such as accounting, interpreting, event planning and tutoring, he said. Those businesses mark an evolution from the mom-and-pop food service, cleaning, retail and construction businesses more commonly started by the initial adult immigrants.
Similarly, Claudia Cardozo-Tarullo, small business accountant executive at R.I. Economic Development Corporation’s Every Company Counts, said she has been helping more offspring of immigrants who themselves came as children, as well as those who are U.S. citizens because they were born here, with their professional-service companies.
“Many of the second-generation Latinos saw their parents work hard and long hours, whether in entry-level jobs or as business owners,” Avila said. “They have become professionals to better prepare [themselves] to move along the economic scale, but are also aware of the great opportunity they have as bilingual professionals providing their services to Latinos and the general public.”
Mendez said about 75 percent of his clientele is minority-owned businesses because that is his “sphere of influence,” but also because the company is located in South Providence – where many minority-owned businesses cluster.
But Mendez is working on building a clientele of mainstream businesses interested in using his bilingual skills to market to the Latino community, which has needs he understands.
“We already work with nonprofits that target services to the minority community,” Mendez said, citing the Urban League of Rhode Island and the John Hope Settlement House as examples.
Xzito Creative Solutions LLC, a Pawtucket-based branding, Web development and marketing firm, also caters to minority businesses and mainstream businesses.
“We know both cultures,” said Jeshua Zapata, 25, co-founder and business-operations director for the company. “That’s really one of the biggest edges we have. We grew up in both cultures.”
Zapata and co-founding brothers Juan Gomez, 25, director of Web development, and Jairo Gomez, 25, director of graphic design, all have roots in Colombia but were either born in Rhode Island or moved here at a young age.
Like Mendez, who started his company with friends, the Xzito co-founders started their company in 2004 because they were friends with complementary skills.
Zapata had earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Bryant University. Juan and Jairo Gomez earned bachelor’s degrees in graphic design from Rhode Island College.
“I think little by little the second generation is getting more educated,” Zapata said.
At first Xzito catered primarily to the Latino community because that was its comfort zone.
“We could offer them something they didn’t have: development of a brand,” Zapata said. “Our job is to educate them on how they need to build a brand. It makes them stronger.”
And though their clientele is about 70 percent Latino-owned businesses, Zapata said, the firm landed mainstream clients such as Teknor Apex, Spardello’s, TCI Press and most recently the branding for We Mean Business. The latter is an initiative of Every Company Counts and the R.I. Office of the Secretary of State that aims to make accessing government easier for small businesses.
Mendez also has provided campaign branding for local Latino politicians because he wants to support the Latino presence in local government and encourage Latino leadership.
Both Mendez and the Xzito founders funded their startups with their own money, relying on sales in the first year to build the resources to slowly grow their businesses.
“We thought, why not do it now, while we’re young with no huge responsibilities of a family,” Zapata said. •