2014 – The Year of the Latino Entrepreneur
Latino Entrepreneurship on the Rise
The surge in Hispanic-owned businesses reflects the rapid growth of the Hispanic population. The number of Hispanics counted in the U.S. census in 2012 rose 2.2 percent from 2011 to 53 million. Demographics in the U.S. are changing dramatically, and at the moment, the entrepreneur sector much more closely reflects the U.S. multicultural population than corporate America. This is because corporate America is still dominated by white middle-aged men and diversity at the higher ranks and opportunities to climb the corporate ladder for Latinos are extremely limited.
Just a few facts: Hispanics held only 3 percent of seats in Fortune 500 boardrooms and Latinas only hold 37 out of 5,511 board seats in the Fortune 500. This is truly disgraceful in my view, especially when you consider that, despite the fact that Hispanics account for 60 million consumers in the U.S. and had a purchasing power of $1.3 trillion in 2013, major players such as American Express, Apple, ExxonMobil and Sears boards exclude Hispanics from their boards.
Increasing Capital and Funding
I suppose Latino entrepreneurship has become beat-them-if-you-cant-join-them matter, which will result in a new entrepreneur-based economy offering increased opportunities for Latinos. So lets get this party started and crown 2014 The year of the Latino Entrepreneur by increasing capital and funding opportunities, access to technology and encourage that chutzpah Latino entrepreneurs are so well known for.
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