Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Serving a Growing Need

The rapid growth of Utah’s Hispanic population has created a strong economic force in the state, while also changing the stereotyped image of low-level immigrant jobs.

“Hispanics are not just employees anymore; they’re business owners and have important positions in large local companies,” says Patricia Quijano Dark, executive director of the Utah Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

With more than 306,500 Hispanics comprising 11 percent of Utah’s population, the growing demographic is creating not only a source of entrepreneurs, but also an intensely loyal consumer group. It’s a group, Dark says, that Utah business leaders would be wise to woo.

“Hispanics are very loyal. They take brand loyalty one step further than the Anglo community,” Dark says. “It’s a client you really want because once you got them, you’ll keep them.”

Because many companies have still not found a way to cater to the Hispanic demographic, Dark says Utah’s Hispanics are still a widely untapped group. That’s where the Chamber comes in.

Every day new local businesses sign up with the Chamber because they want to break into the Hispanic community and get to know its unique needs, Dark says. What began as more of a social network for Hispanics has quickly grown a full-service Chamber of Commerce.

In fact, about half of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s clientele are non-Hispanic business owners trying to connect with the minority community.

“We spend more and we’re loyal to the shops that fulfill our needs. If we find something we like, we’re not going to keep shopping around,” Dark says.

Hispanic consumers also tend to spend a higher percentage of their income on clothes and food because of the cultural trend of big family get-togethers, she adds.

Nearly one in four new Utahns were Hispanic from 2006-207, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Those new residents are a fresh consumer base for local companies, but need access to services in Spanish, as well as an understanding of how U.S. businesses differ from their hometowns, Dark says.

Regence Health Insurance is one company that has invested time and money into the Hispanic consumer group. Most Hispanic immigrants are unfamiliar with private health insurance, so Regence established a 24-hour, 7-day a week phone line with a bilingual support person. Customers can all about anything from how to find a doctor to how to fill out a form.

“More and more companies are starting to develop programs that are targeted specifically at the Hispanic community, knowing they may not have the background that Anglo users do,” Dark says.

Dark also helps Hispanic men and women who want to start their own business or connect with other ethnic business owners. Dark, who has been at the Chamber for three years, says an increasing number of Hispanic residents are trying to start their own companies to fill voids in their community.

There are more than 5,000 Hispanic-owned businesses in Utah, according to Dark, and she expects those numbers only to grow in coming years with nearly 20 percent of Utah’s children being of Hispanic descent.

“We just keep running to try to catch up with ourselves,” she says.

The Hispanic chamber helps would-be business owners to brush up on local laws, as well as learn how to market a company and write a business plan.

“Basically we point them in the right direction—to the experts,” she says. “We’re kind of like a fountain of knowledge. We’re 411, and in some cases we’re 911 too.”

But Hispanic business owners do have extra roadblocks, Dark adds. While the traditional obstacles of money and language are becoming less of a problem because third and fourth generation Hispanic families are generally bilingual, there are new issues such as immigration laws that can trip up some Hispanic companies.

The stigma that all Hispanics are illegal immigrants, for example, has many Hispanic residents feeling unwanted. Often, a legal resident will be trying to arrange residency papers for a relative and when the request is denied, the whole family moves.

“It has nothing to do with legal status, it’s just the perception,” she says. “If one of the people in the family gets attacked, the whole family may move. You have huge families leaving – people who are supporting the economy of the state.”

While Dark adds that the illegal immigration issue has not become as hot yet in Utah as in other nearby states, it could soon heat up. She especially has her eye on a new legislative proposal requiring re-verification of the legal status of all employees.

Besides helping Hispanic businessmen and women jump those hurdles, the Chamber also provides a critical networking hub.

Through a monthly luncheon and after-work party, the Chamber’s clients can meet to exchange tips and make contacts with the more than 100 Chamber clients that attend the events.

“What we do really well is bridge all the communities together,” Dark says. “We get people together and share information.”

Article by Erin Stewart