The Latino Coalition 2013 Small Business Summit Reaches New Heights And Showcases The Impact Of Small Business To The U.S. Economy

WASHINGTON, DC
– The Latino Coalition, a leading advocate for Latino-owned, small and medium-sized businesses, in conjunction with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce hosted a record breaking America’s Small Business Summit 2013 from Monday, April 29th – Wednesday, May 1st in Washington, DC.

With a commitment to building a stronger American economy, The Latino Coalition brought together government leaders, national and international business figures and hundreds of corporate delegates from the United States and abroad to discuss important issues to small business including procurement opportunities, newly available financing, risk management, legal reform, healthcare, immigration and international trade.

“The 2013 Small Business Summit was an incredible achievement for small business,” said Hector Barreto, TLC’s Chairman and Former Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (2001-2006).  “Small businesses are leading the way and this summit is now  the largest event of its kind in the country. We drew over 3,000 small business owners from across the nation and covered everything from accessing corporate and government contracts to healthcare and its impact on the economic growth of small business.”

The Business Matchmaking component to the summit is the nation’s leading non-profit small business procurement program.  Over the last six years, Business Matchmaking has coordinated over 80,000 face-to-face meetings and facilitated billions in verifiable contracts for small firms.  This year’s summit brought together scores of small businesses who met with procurement representatives of federal and local government agencies as well as major corporations to access opportunities for small business, which are the engine of our economy.

The summit brought together executives and entrepreneurs to network, learn, and advocate for policies that support small business growth.  Attendees also had the opportunity to hear from corporate and government leaders such as Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Steve Forbes, Investigative Journalist and Best Selling Author Bob Woodward, CEO of Alvarado Construction and Co-Owner of the Colorado Rockies Linda Alvarado, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, US Department of Health & Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Bank of America CEO Brian T. Moynihan and Walmart VP of US Sourcing and Manufacturing Greg L. Hall to name a few.

Healthcare and its effect on small business and the Latino community were debated during the 2013 Small Business Summit.  During the conference, an impreMedia/Latino Decisions national poll was released in conjunction with The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Center.  The polls key findings indicated that less than a quarter of Latinos feel well informed about the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  The poll also showed that only 13% of Latinos believe that public officials took the needs of the Latino community into account during the ACA debate and bill passage.  However, despite having limited awareness about the legislation, 75% of those polled indicated that the ACA could be good for the Latino community in the long run.

Leading the discussion on immigration, The Latino Coalition hosted a panel on the importance of prompt action on a comprehensive bipartisan reform bill as priority number one, not only for Latino groups, but also for all seeking to expand the worker pool and grow our U.S. economy.

During the conference, the organization entered into a cooperative agreement to jointly deepen and strengthen relations between the Jewish and Latino communities in the United States with the American Jewish Committee Latino & Latin American Institute.  An alliance was also formed with the Central Exchange, a foundation presenting educational programs designed to promote the personal and professional development of women in business and the community.

Leadership awards were also presented to key figures including the President of the Cultural Foundation Isidro Fabela, Arturo Peña del Mazo, the President of Litografía Magnograf, Armando Prida-Huerta, Puebla Mexico’s Secretary of State Luis Maldonado-Venegas and Actor and Education Advocate Tony Plana.

“The impact of Latino small business continues to grow significantly.  They account for over three million small business owners nationwide and generate over $500 billion in revenue each year.  This year’s summit educated, advocated and reinforced that our community is critically essential to the economic growth of the nations future and will be an active partner in seeking the resources and strategies necessary for our economy to succeed,” added Barreto.

The Latino Coalition will host its West Coast Small Business Summit in San Francisco, CA on October 9, 2013.

The Latino Coalition would like to acknowledge the following partners who contributed to the success of the 2013 Small Business Summit: Wal-Mart, Lucrazon, AlvaradoSmith A Professional Corporation, AT&T, Intuit, MasterCard, Comcast, PG & E, U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, Google, AltaMed, WellMed, Biz2Credit, National Cable & Telecommunications Association, Verizon, Conexion, Business Matchmaking, Bank of America, The Libre Intiative, impreMedia, CapitalwirePR, Latin Business Today, LatinoNewsEagle, VOXXI, Impacto Latin News and American Beverage Association.