Latino Briefs Digest

This monthly digest is written primarily for the staff of UC Cooperative Extension. It is produced by the staff of ANR's News and Information Outreach in Spanish (NOS) based on news reported by mainstream news media and reputable research institutions. Inclusion in the digest does not imply endorsement, nor does SBMS assume responsibility for the veracity of the information. We invite our readers to refer to the source to read more of each particular brief; we'll try to always include a link.

Latino women entrepreneurs are playing an increasingly prominent role in the small business boom that is fueling the economy, according to statistics cited in an article from DirectoHispano.com, a Web site for marketing to Hispanics. The article quotes statistics from the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce that reveal Hispanic women-owned firms employ 18.5 percent of the workers in all Hispanic-owned firms, generate 16.3 percent of the sales and that Latinas control 39 percent of the 1.4 million companies owned by minority women in the U.S. According to a survey titled “The Spirit of Enterprise: Latina Entrepreneurs in the United States,” by the National Foundation for Women Business Owners, Hispanic women are in a wide variety of industries. Ten percent are in construction, 10 percent in accounting, engineering and other professional services and 9 percent in manufacturing. A smaller number, about 4 percent, own businesses such as hotels, restaurants and bars. Nearly two-thirds of the Latina entrepreneurs use English and Spanish in their business activities. Just over half consider English their first language. The survey found that, compared to Caucasian and African-American female entrepreneurs, Latinas have more dependent children, are older and have lower formal education. “It would be an understatement indeed to say that Latina-owned businesses survive despite all odds,” the article says. “They face capital shortages, owners lack business education and experience, and their very existence is threatened by the skyrocketing costs of health care insurance.”