Hispanic Entrepreneur

Victor Urbaez > www.tuabogadodelpueblo.com

2013-06-12T08:54:00.002-04:00

Victor M. Urbaez , Attorney and Founder, Tuabogadodelpueblo.com

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

You can’t fear failure. You have to believe in yourself. If you truly, truly believe, then you have no fear of failure because you believe that you will not fail.

What did inspire you to start your business?

I’m a free spirited person. And I felt stuck because I had a law degree but I was a teacher. The only way to transition from one to the other was to just jump right in! So I left my teaching job and opened my law office, and prayed!

How did you finance it?

Don’t do what I did please. But I withdraw my funds from my 401.

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?

Absolutely! Firstly, I am TuAbogadoDelPueblo.com. And secondly, there is such a need out there for a Spanish speaking attorney and also a culturally relevant attorney as well.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

Tough question. I just know that the next day is a brand new day. I’m the one that decides how to take it, how to wake up the next morning.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

Since I never worked for anybody as an attorney, I never did a hands on apprenticeship, that has been the biggest challenge for me. Somethings would have been so easy if someone had just shown me and pointed the way. Instead I had to learn by myself thru trial and error, the simplest of things.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I would like to move things along a lot faster but until I get an assistant its just not possible yet.

What was your childhood ambition?

To be a baseball player!

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

I can think of 1: The lady on the corner that sells habichuelas dulces. I think she gets more for her money in terms of profit and expensive then 95% of businesses out there. Lines are blocks long and there is very little overhead. It’s a sweet business!

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Lunch

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

A lot more late hours compared to when I was teaching. As a teacher, I was home at 3-4pm. Now, it could be 9pm. 10pm. And I have to travel more now, to different courts, different cities and towns.

What is your favorite quote?

I give because I have I have because I give therefore I am never without.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

Yes it is difficult to be unconventional, that is, if you don’t have the confidence. It takes confidence in yourself to be step out and do something differently.

Biggest mistake made?
Not answered

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

Not really. I don’t consider myself an innovator. I see myself as a practical person. I had a law degree and it seemed practical to practice law. I went to law school, because it seemed practical to try to earn more money as a lawyer, a profession that is coveted for higher salaries. It just seems practical to me. Hard work but… practical!

About the Company

Victor M. Urbaez , As an attorney, I just try to apply common sense to the situation. And listen to the needs of my client.

My clients are the Latino community, who usually have no voice. And I am their voice.

TuAbogadoDelPueblo.com is a general law practice law firm that handles a wide range of cases, from, divorces to traffic cases, criminal cases to child support, police brutality to accidents.

Facebook: Facebook.com/TuAbogadoDelPueblo

Twitter: @TorresAndUrbaez
Google +: +TorresAndUrbaez

Cenia Paredes > www.ceniany.com

2013-04-29T13:30:00.001-04:00

Cenia Paredes, Designer/Founder, Cenia New York

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

Risk taker, innovator, passionate, proactive, persistent, disciplined, hard working.

What did inspire you to start your business?
To be able to write my own destiny

How did you finance it?
With my personal savings and when that ran out my partner stepped in and helpped

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?
Absolutely. Growing up in Latin America definitely plays a major roll in my character, principles and values and allowed me to appreciate more the opportunities that America has to offer.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
By focusing on solutions rather than the problem, learning from the situation and immediately thinking of a plan to overcome it.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
Getting off the ground in the midst of recession

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
I would have started to delegate more from early on

What was your childhood ambition?
To be a renowned fashion designer

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
Oprah, Bill gates, Steve Jobs

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Lunch

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?
Innumerable. In order to be able to graduate fashion school while being a single mother, and launch my own line while working full time for another company, I worked 15 hours a day, 7 days a week, so I did not have a social life for years but the hardest part was not to be able to spend as much time with my children as I wanted.

What is your favorite quote?
"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." -Theodore Roosevelt

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
It is indeed. You can be misinterpreted at times and can also raise some eyebrows as well.

Biggest mistake made?
Not doing my homework and act only on instict. There has to be synergy between the two.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
Absolutely! By attempting to offer an alternative to what’s been traditionally offered in market, women’s clothing in 4 distinctive fits

About the Company

Cenia Paredes, a native of the Dominican Republic grew up in family dedicated almost entirely to the fine art of dress making. Cenia graduated Summa cum Laude from the prestigious Fashion Institute of Technology in 2004. She then worked in New York's competitive fashion district for various renowned brands, but always kept her dream of designing her own line as her ultimate goal. In 2009, Cenia launched her first ready to wear collection, a clothing line that not only represented her vision and design sensibility, that would also help real women look their best no matter what shape.

Cenia blends inspiration from her Latin roots with her American influence to create a modern contemporary look that appeals to today's modern woman. Her sensibility for detail, choice of fabrication and her bold exclusive prints have set her apart as a raising star in New York's fashion scene.

In 2011, Cenia was chosen among 900 companies as one of the 22 participants of The Workshop At Macy’s, and she was one of 4 vendors chosen to launch her product in selected stores in the June’12. Since then, Cenia has been shipping Macy’s stores in Florida, California, US’ Central and the East Coast and Puerto Rico.

Links:

www.ceniany.com

www.facebook.com/ceniany?ref=hl

www.twitter.com/CeniaNY

www.youtube.com/user/CeniaNewYorkTV?feature=mhee

Britta Aragon > www.cvskinlabs.com

2013-04-22T17:49:00.002-04:00

Britta Aragon, Natural Beauty Expert, Author, Cancer Survivor and Creator and Founder of CV Skinlabs

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Passion. I think if you’re going to pursue your own business, this is the most important thing to have. Passion will give you the energy and stamina to get the business off the ground, and will also help you sustain through the ups and downs that are bound to come along. As for where that passion comes from, I think it needs to be from a strong sense of purpose. For me, my business was a way to honor my father’s legacy, and to give back to the cancer community—two things that mean a lot to me.

What did inspire you to start your business?
Seeing people like my father struggle with skin conditions like rashes, dryness, dullness, acne, burning, itching—all these things can be not only irritating and painful, but they can completely wreck a person’s self-confidence.

I watched my father, who was a strong, self-assured, extremely capable person, become concerned about showing his face when he suffered from an awful rash caused by chemotherapy. It affects people a lot more than we realize, and I think it’s an outrage that many people are suffering these problems because of the questionable ingredients used in standard personal care products. I wanted to increase awareness about the toxins we’re exposed to every day, and offer people a better solution.

How did you finance it?
We are self-funded right now, and have just launched our first crowdfunding campaign. (http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/toxins-harm-skin-we-need-you-to-fight-back-with-cv-skinlabs-safe-skin-care)
Our goal is to raise $65,000 to create a sampling program in hospitals across the nation, where we can help those with sensitive skin and conditions like eczema, redness, and chronic dryness. Our products are free of irritating and toxic chemicals, and people with sensitive, fragile skin can use them to repair and recover with complete peace of mind.

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?
In positive ways, yes. First of all, the name of my business, Cinco Vidas, of course means “five lives” in Spanish. That is a tribute to the five times my father renewed his commitment to life while going through cancer. He was initially diagnosed with colon cancer, but then he went through five recurrences of the disease in different parts of his body. His enduring courage in facing each of those occurrences was so inspiring to me. I also feel that because of my Hispanic heritage, I have a connection with others who share that heritage, and I understand the benefits and the challenges of that.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
It comes back to purpose. After I went through cancer and later lost my father to the disease, I knew that my purpose was to make a difference for other people going through similar challenges—whether from cancer or from battling a variety of skin conditions. I wanted to teach people how to reduce their toxic load by making better choices about their personal care products, home care products, and environment—how to live healthier lives all around. So really, this is about my purpose in life.

It’s just not something that I can stop doing or quit doing. It’s about my life path, and my reason for being here, so even though I may go through difficulties, which of course I do, there’s just no quitting for me.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
We are a small business, so we face the same challenge that all small businesses face, and that is to find the funding and the distribution needed to really expand and reach our target market. We have accomplished a lot already, but I want to go further. I want to get our non-toxic products out globally, and I want to continue to educate people about the toxins in their products and their environment. So until our reach grows broad enough to sustain us, we face the challenge of funding our endeavors.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
I would make it bigger and more well-known at a global level. We have amazing products that work and are helping so many but we need to get the word out to the masses. I would like every person with sensitive skin, a difficult skin condition, reactive skin—or who just wants non-toxic skincare—to know about CV Skinlabs.

What was your childhood ambition?
I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma at 16. After I went into remission, I wanted to be an oncologist, because I wanted to save everyone from this horrible disease. As I grew older, my passion changed. Instead of curing the skin, I became obsessed with making it look fantastic. Both my grandma and mother took very good care of themselves, and both had beautiful, even skin. My mom still does. So that was a big influence on me. Growing up, my grandmother insisted I wear sunscreen every day and that I take proper care of my skin. She even bought me my sunblock product and eye cream at the age of 15.

I guess all of these experiences lead me to the beauty industry. I became a makeup artist and skincare therapist to help people look their best—which usually made them feel their best, too. It’s poetic, really, that through beauty, I am helping people feel good during their cancer journey, or through other difficulties in life that affect their skin.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
Richard Branson is an entrepreneur that I admire. He has a huge empire, is committed to making a difference, and has done so at a global level.

I’m a huge admirer of Louise Hay. Not only is she a cancer survivor, but she overcame incredible life challenges to make a success of herself, eventually becoming founder of Hay House publishing, which produces so many helpful books for people. Whatever one might think of her beliefs, she has been a strong and powerful woman in our culture, reaching out to help people living with cancer and AIDS, and helping us realize that our health depends just as much on the condition of our minds and spirits as on our physical bodies.

Lastly, Shanda Sumpter is an amazing coach and entrepreneur who teaches women how to find their passion and make money. What is most inspiring is that she is successful, makes a difference in people’s lives, and still lives a life filled with joy and passion, herself. It seems this is a hard balance to keep for most entrepreneurs and she has got what most of us want.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Lunch definitely! Breakfast is my time to nourish myself and set my attitude for the day, so I cherish that morning time as private time—and I always have the same thing for breakfast: a green smoothie! It’s really my sacred time. Dinner is usually spent with friends, and I use that time to de-stress and to reconnect to who I am, outside of work. So lunch is my time to really focus on my business and my business connections, a time when I’m all in and pumped up about what we’re accomplishing—but that’s only because I had my private morning breakfast and my fun, stress-relieving dinner! (ha)

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?
I think the biggest sacrifice is time, and a side effect of that can be my health, if I’m not careful. Running a business is all-consuming, and you can really start to neglect your body and your spirit. I preach safe self-care to my blog readers and my customers, so I have to walk the walk, you know? I regularly remind myself that my life is multi-faceted, and includes my work, but also my health and my spiritual well being.

I have had to learn to fully trust that all will work out—even if I don’t quite see how at the time—and to delegate tasks that I don’t absolutely have to do myself. Time is my biggest commodity, and while at first I had to put in most of that time myself, I know that it’s critical to delegate to be able to grow the business the way I want to.

What is your favorite quote?
Feel the fear and do it anyway! This was the title of one of my dad’s favorite books by Susan Jeffers. He passed it on to me, and I have shared it with so many of my friends. I have yet to ever regret doing something that I was a little afraid of doing. Like they say, you usually regret the things you don’t do more than those you do, so I try to make a point to continually challenge myself, as that’s the way we grow.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
It can be, at times, but anything worth doing is usually difficult. Going against the grain can put you out there, and you have to be willing to withstand some criticism at times, but if that’s what it takes to accomplish your goals, then it’s much better to do that than to sit back and stay safe and then regret it later on.

Biggest mistake made?
My biggest mistakes invariably occur when I ignore my own instincts. If I listen too much to the “experts,” I can sometimes ignore the “inner expert” that guides me. I find that though it’s important to listen to others, in the end, you must go with your gut.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
I do, and not because I’m smarter or more talented than anyone else, but because the work I’ve chosen to do is something that needs to be done, and no one else is really focusing on in quite the same way that I am. I have a unique background to draw on, since I experienced cancer as both a fighter and a caregiver. I also saw first-hand the effect that today’s conventional ingredients can have on fragile skin, when I bought a supposedly “sensitive” high-end cream that actually burned my father’s irritated skin even more.

I felt so awful about that I was compelled to do the research, discover the problem, and set out to fix it, with the goal of making sensitive skin care much more nourishing and soothing than it has been up until now. Other companies are talking about natural and organic products, but no one’s really focusing on fragile, damaged, medically treated skin and how many standard ingredients can actually make it worse.

About the Company
I started CInco Vidas with The Cinco Vidas blog, a robust information source for people struggling with sensitive and damaged skin, and for those going through the difficult side effects of cancer treatments. Next, I wrote my book, When Cancer Hits, which is a guide for the newly diagnosed, and includes information on how to manage side effects, how to avoid harmful toxins, how to use skin care and makeup to look your best, and how to increase your odds of avoiding recurrence. Actres and President of Cancer Schmancer Fran Drescher said of the book, “There are lots of experts in the field, but advice from one who went through it herself is invaluable. I wish this book had existed during my own battle.”

Last year, I created my new skin care line, CV Skinlabs. This is a natural and organic collection of luxuriously soothing and clinically proven formulas that nurture and repair skin. Each product delivers outstanding beauty benefits and proven results, with an unprecedented, new standard of safety, every step of the way. The range of carefully formulated products can be used with peace of mind by all—particularly by those with sensitive or compromised skin, chemical sensitivities, or conditions such as eczema and chronic dryness, to name a few.

• We help restore skin to its healthy, radiant best, with renewed softness, suppleness and a youthful glow.

• We insist on the utmost in safety, by toxicologically examining and screening all ingredients for any link to irritation, cancer or hormone disruption, and by conducting results-driven, rigorous clinical testing.

• We adhere to strict formula safety guidelines and standards, making sure not to use any ingredients from an extensive list of potentially harmful thickeners, preservatives and aesthetic enhancers, often found in conventional skin care products.

Our goal is to always deliver beauty and safety, without compromise.

CV Skinlabs was created by safe cosmetic expert and author, Britta Aragon, who after failing to find safe, nourishing skin care products to soothe her own and her father’s troubled skin during cancer treatments, developed a skincare line for anyone seeking safe solutions to repair and restore radiance and luminosity to sensitive skin.

Websites: www.cincovidas.com and www.cvskinlabs.com
Twitter: @Britta_Aragon and @CVskinlabs

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CVskinlabs

Linked in: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/britta-aragon/12/b56/411

Nhora Barrera Murphy > www.tmncorp.com

2013-04-21T09:38:00.001-04:00

Nhora Barrera Murphy, CEO, TMN

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

For me the most important aspect is “attitude.” I am a positive person and always try to see the good side even at bad times. Setting goals and applying myself to them with discipline and persistence has been a basic aspect of my career. My goals have all been based on strategic planning to help me reach measurable goals. Clients are an intrinsically part of my planning. We know our clients and strive to service them with personalized attention tailoring each program to their needs and objectives.

What did inspire you to start your business?

My career was leading me more and more to do outreach and to work on social issues. My understanding of the gaps, barriers and needs that Hispanics were facing in health care were my motivation to start the company. Our work is very rewarding and an inspiration not only for me for my staff.

How did you finance it?

Savings and loans backed up with personal property.

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?

In my line of business YES, it’s had a big influence. I have focused my career to reach out Hispanics in the U.S. with culturally-appropriate messages through national communication programs with a social component that are aimed to educate Hispanic community about health, traffic safety, environment and educational issues. The principles and methodologies used have helped me to expand into other areas. As my business has grown, we have learned that underserved markets have many of the same needs. So we have expanded our business and our staff to serve many ethnic groups. The goal is to empower these groups to gain the tools to achieve the American Dream.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

I just move on and look at the big spectrum in the horizon. How I see or perceive the adversity will model the approach that that I will take on the situation; therefore, I try to find the best out of adversity and turn it into something positive or a lesson learned. At some points, it is important to step back before you leap forward.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

Buying my partner out and refocusing the company to achieve my business goals.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I wish I had the knowledge I now have when I started and I wish I had a business mentor.

What was your childhood ambition?

The business world was always fascinating to me. I didn’t have an exact idea or role in mind, it evolved with time.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

1. Steve Jobs: I admire his charisma, innovation and vision that ultimately changed the computer industry.

2. Barbara Corcoran: Her story is inspiring. So is the self confidence it took her to build a 6 billon dollar company. I also admire her willingness to share of her wisdom with other entrepreneurs.

3. Oprah Winfrey: I admire her determination to achieve what she wants and her commitment to helping others.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

I am flexible, but I prefer lunch or dinner.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

Family. I had to sacrifice quality time with my youngest son during his early years.

What is your favorite quote?

I like following quote because I think no one person can build a successful business alone. My team is committed, dedicated and truly believe in what we do.

“Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” Henry Ford

Biggest mistake made?

I don’t like to categorize mistakes by size because what you could feel and call a big mistake at a particular time in your life may be meaningless in the present. The most important thing is to learn from the mistake. There is a lot of opportunity in starting and growing a business to make mistakes.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

Yes, if you do not change, reinvent, and adapt you will not succeed. To stay in business you must innovate constantly.

Company Description:
TMNcorp is a full-service communications firm in Silver Spring, MD that provides innovative solutions in marketing, branding, strategic communications and social awareness through expertly coordinated media.

Founded in 1999, TMN excels in creating and implementing national, regional, and local campaigns for general and multicultural audiences. We believe our team’s combination of high quality research and multi‐faceted media experience; coupled with a solid understanding of community dynamics, sets us apart from other traditional communications, research, public relations, and advertising companies.

Social Media Links:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/tmncorp

Twitter: @TMNcorp

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/61360?trk=tyah

Sebastian Aroca > www.hispanicmarketadvisors.com

2013-04-09T08:54:00.003-04:00

Sebastian Aroca, Owner & Founder, Hispanic Market Advisors®

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

To be an entrepreneur, one needs many virtues and qualities. Among some of the most important for me are (listing four pairs): initiative & commitment, creativity & integrity, determination & focus, and perseverance & assertiveness.

What did inspire you to start your business?

United States is the country of innovation and opportunities, if not here where else to put an idea into motion and start a business? Three things inspired me to start my own business: 1/ the ability to create what I want as a way of self-expression, 2/ the ability to grow at my own pace, 3/ the access to valuable resources for start-ups and small business owners (SBA, Score, Chambers of Commerce, organizations supporting Minority-Owned Businesses, etc)

How did you finance it?

I founded Hispanic Market Advisors ® in 2007. I started translating websites from English to Spanish in the computer labs of Florida International University, in Miami. With a simple desire to grow a niche market by helping brands and small- and medium-sized companies connect with the online Hispanic market. Six years later, Hispanic Market Advisors ® provides translation and search engine marketing services (Hispanic search engine optimization + paid search engine advertising), to both the private and public sectors, and we remain committed to expanding the company gradually and organically, never sacrificing quality for the sake of profits.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?

Yes, it does. I am proud of being of Hispanic descent, and I see and feel my Hispanic Heritage as a plus, not a minus. Like the Univision video “The New American Reality,” says, Bilingualism and Biculturalism is a Plus!

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

In the face of adversity, what keeps me going is the Vision I set for the company. I want Hispanic Market Advisors® to become the specialized agency of choice from both the private and public sector when it comes to English to Spanish translations and Latino SEO/SEM. At the same time, I want our efforts to also contribute to the Hispanic community by enabling Latinos to become more technologically savvy. Hispanic Market Advisors® is currently designing a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program with two other organizations to boost computer literacy among US Hispanics. This initiative, besides the positive social impact, will help our company because the more Hispanics living in the United States know how to use a computer and search online, the bigger the pie will be for our clients, and the bigger the pie for our clients, the more our online marketing services will be in demand…

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

The biggest challenge is to manage the business through growth, transitioning from freelancer and independent contractor to a small business owner. At Hispanic Market Advisors®, after almost 6 years since we started in 2007, as previously mentioned, we remain committed to expanding the company gradually and organically, never sacrificing quality for the sake of profits. However, when we need to incorporate someone else to the team, a new intern, employee or contractor, there are complications that arise, for I tend to find myself overworking during the process and creating work-life imbalance that can be difficult to manage until things settle.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I would invest more time being proactive and less reactive. One example, I would do more when it comes to building the infrastructure of my business’ operations: would create more manuals, processes, and training videos. In other words, setting up a structure that then can work for me, and not the other way around. Because I am financially conservative when it comes to my business, it’s hard for me to decide to use a loan or line of credit to hire new talent, for instance. So far, I have financed my small business with profits, and the idea of using debt rather than profit to finance growth is a hard paradigm for me to break, but one that I am learning to become savvier about finding the right mix.

What was your childhood ambition?

Creating something meaningful, something that could outlive me. I am on that process: my small business.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

I have many, but I will name three from the technology industry because that is where I am. Guy Kawasaki (The Art of the Start), Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg… and of course, Bill Gates!

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Whatever works. I adapt well. However, if I had to choose, probably breakfast, I am a morning person; besides the sooner I get things done the better for me!

What is your favorite quote?

Our mantra: "We do the impossible everyday and perform miracles for our clients and partners upon special request!"

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

I think to be an entrepreneur one needs to be unconventional to some degree. After all, when one is starting anything, especially a business, there’s an energy that breaks through old patterns and accepted ways of doing things (status quo), whether is through a new product, service or simply a better and more optimized way of doing the same thing.

Biggest mistake made?

In the journey of creating a business, mistakes are unavoidable. The biggest one, probably not having connected sooner with senior business mentors that can provide valuable perspective for having already walked the path I am on. Although I have a few business mentors now, I wish I could have reached out to them sooner.

Do you consider yourself an innovator?

Yes, I am constantly thinking about innovative ways to add value to my clients’ businesses. It’s not unusual, for instance, that when I go to a Business Conference, I find myself focused on discovering ideas that will make my clients’ businesses more successful.

Why?

I love the creation process. I like Product/Service Development. Specifically, I like to develop new services that can connect innovative and impactful brands with the Latino market.

About the company

Hispanic Market Advisors® is a boutique company focused on connecting brands with Hispanic Internet users. Our main services are English to Spanish translations and Latino SEO/SEM, and they are geared towards supporting companies of all sizes to tap into (and reap the growth of) the Latin American and US Hispanic market.

Anthony Rosa, CEO, www.gseafg.com

2013-02-05T19:30:00.003-05:00

Anthony Rosa, CEO, GSEA Fashion Group, LLC.

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Passion and a relentless determination to succeed.

What did inspire you to start your business?
Control.

How did you finance it?
We are still in the process of financing our factory’s growth; however, the company was built on a combination of personal savings, family and friends.

Being hispanic - does it have any influence on my business?
Not necessarily since apparel is a global business; however, I will say that my culture defines the way I run my business - with much passion.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
My faith carries me throughout any and all adversity.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
Balancing

USA

Sales with

Peru

Operations.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
I wouldn’t change anything…yet.

What was your childhood ambition?
Since I was a child I always wanted to play professional basketball. Fell short of that goal, but who knows, maybe one day I will find my way there through another door…maybe by designing and merchandising for the NBA.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
Amancio Ortega – controlled the supply chain, created an empire - Zara.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Either one, but if I had to go in order of preference… lunch, breakfast then dinner.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?
Time with family – can’t ever get that back, which is why I work as hard on balancing my life as I do trying to grow the business.

What is your favorite quote?
Do not have one

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
I think so. Going against the current on a daily basis is not easy, it challenges your will to succeed every day.

Biggest mistake made?
Trying to grow too quickly, taking on accounts bigger than what our factory could handle.

Do you consider yourself an innovator?
Not so much an innovator as the apparel manufacturing business has been around long before I was born and will continue on long after my time is up, but I do consider our approach to controlling our supply chain to be different.

About the Company:
GSEA Fashion Group is a Full Service Fashion House for an expanding family of fashion-forward brands with its Apparel Manufacturing Plant in Lima,

Peru

.GSEA Fashion Group produces Premium Better Basics and Novelty Tops including, but not limited to: T-Shirts, Polos, Fleece, Dresses and more... Direct-Access to the World's Finest Luxury Peruvian Pima Cotton separates us from competitors.

Website: www.gseafg.com / Facebook: www.facebook.com/gseafg

Anthony Rosa, CEO, www.gseafg.com

2013-02-02T17:03:00.000-05:00

GSEA Fashion Group from GSEA Fashion Group - NYC on Vimeo.

Kevin Kilpatrick > Constru-Guía

2013-01-21T09:32:00.000-05:00

Kevin Kilpatrick, Founder and President, The Cloud Peak Firm & Constru-Guia

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

I am convinced that you either are built to be an entrepreneur or you are not. You have to be a dreamer, a hard worker and stubborn.

What inspired you to start your business?

I worked at The Home Depot from 2001 to 2004 and then started a marketing firm serving the home improvement and construction industry. It was while working with a client that is a major power tool manufacturer that I began analyzing the demographic statistics about construction professionals, I saw a huge opportunity to develop a media company providing helpful content for male Hispanic construction professionals and business owners of home improvement, gardening, and building maintenance businesses.

How did you finance it?

Fortunately, I didn’t require any financing. My advertising partners trusted me and believed in my vision. Their generosity helped me to launch the magazine in 2007.

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?

I’m not Hispanic and, in fact, no hablo español, but I saw the opportunity to help Hispanic contractors and workers with high-quality professional tips. Our team at Constru-Guía is excited to provide our magazine readers with high-quality professional guidance in Spanish. And now, we offer this content in both English and Spanish on the newly re-launched bi-lingual MiConstruguia.com [link to: http://www.miconstruguia.com/] where users can toggle between English and Spanish-language articles.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

The Constru-Guía brand is what feeds my family. All I need for inspiration is to look at my kids as I tuck them in bed each night.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

Without question the recession and housing crises affected our industry like nobody could have ever predicted.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

This a challenging question. I truly can’t think of one thing I would change. I have a great team that I get to work with every day and we have readers of the magazine and website and listeners to our daily radio tips that like the content we produce and they tell us constantly how we are helping them.

What was your childhood ambition?

I have always wanted to work in the marketing/advertising/public relations industry.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

All three are readers that I have been fortunate to meet through the magazine. These guys amaze me. They are so smart and full of ingenuity. They are on the job site during the day and then running their businesses at night. Every time when I think I have it rough I think of these guys and it puts everything in perspective.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Breakfast with a big cup of coffee

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

You can never take any time off. Each vacation I have taken since launching my business I have my Blackberry attached to my hip and find myself doing a couple hours of work each day. However, don’t get me wrong, I love my business and will gladly give up vacations for it.

What is your favorite quote?

A wise old owl sat in an oak,

The more he saw the less he spoke,

The less he spoke the more he heard,

Why can’t we all be like that wise old bird?

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

At times, yes. For us we are unconventional in the sense our magazine is given away and we don’t have a large subscription list. It takes us some time and energy to explain to media buyers the benefit to this unconventional distribution system.

Biggest mistake made?

Trying to grow too quickly. We had a very large national retailer that saw our success with the magazine distribution at Home Depot and offered to carry the magazine in 2,000+ of their stores. I was game for the additional distribution, but my advertising partners didn’t have the appetite for the growth explosion.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

Yes, because an innovator has to see an opportunity, take ideas/solutions that currently exist in the marketplace, twist it into something new, and then go for it. That’s what we did at Constru-Guía…create something new in Spanish for the Hispanic market but based on media vehicles that existed in English.

Add here a brief description of your company

Constru-Guía al día® is a quarterly Spanish-language magazine, the largest construction magazine in the U.S. regardless of language, and a bi-lingual English/Spanish website. Constru-Guía focuses on job-site safety, the latest building techniques, new products/services, lifestyle, financial, health and wellness information. Our distribution is over 325,000 in 1,100 Home Depot stores nationwide and over 150 national convenience stores, including 7-Eleven, in the top U.S. Hispanic markets, a 7% increase in total circulation from 2012.

Vivian R. Isaak > www.magnumgroupinc.com

2012-10-23T17:42:00.002-04:00

Vivian R. Isaak, President, Magnum Group, Inc.

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Vision, passion, determination, and the ability to lead with your heart.

What inspired you to start your business?
My passion for languages and the need to raise my son on my own.

How did you finance it?
I did not have any seed money to start the business. When Magnum was 5 years old, we procured an SBA loan of $25,000 to buy equipment.

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?
I grew up in Argentina. The connection with the Western Hemisphere is part of my heritage, a personality trait that influences my business as well as my personal life.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
Adversity gives us the chance to regroup and change. I take it as a challenge to find new ways of growing the business.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
After September 11, one of our clients cancelled a major contract. The challenge was to bring in new business during a time of national crisis while keeping the number of employees intact and the banks happy.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
I would grow the business faster.

What was your childhood ambition?
Work for the United Nations.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
Lee Iacocca, Golda Meir, Leonardo da Vinci

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
I like to schedule business meetings on or about 11:30 am. The timeframe allows for ample time to address business issues at the office and a smooth transition to a relaxed meal at one of the wonderful restaurants in our area.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?
I sacrificed week-ends and vacation time.

What is your favorite quote?
The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug. Mark Twain

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
Difficult? It’s fun!!!

Biggest mistake made?
Sacrificing week-ends and vacation time.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why
More than an innovator, I consider myself an inspired rainmaker. I can make things happen.

About Magnum

Magnum Group is a leading provider of a full range of services designed to support global business communications and help you zoom in on the linguistic needs of a global audience: technical and medical translations from and into most languages; linguistic consulting; multilingual desktop publishing; website localization; multilingual versioning of corporate and industrial videos, PSAs and commercials; subtitling; videoconferencing; e-learning, conference interpreters and equipment. Magnum Group works with a worldwide network of certified translators, editors, and subject matter experts in various fields to meet the highest quality standards.

Alex & María Martínez > www.i9sports.com

2012-09-21T11:47:00.003-04:00

Alex & María Martínez, Owners, i9 Sports Franchise Miami, FL

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
For us, it was important to join an established franchise business that allowed us to operate as independent business owners. The i9 Sports home office gives us phenomenal support and allows us to run our business in a way that fits our local community – the perfect combination in our mind.
We also have a business coach that has been assigned to us by the home office who has directly contributed to our success. Our coach has helped us build our territory, market our business, and get our foot in the door with schools and other youth organizations who can drive registrations. Additionally, we are surrounded by a great network of franchisees in the Miami area who are always willing to share success stories and best practices.
Between the established franchisees, our business coach, and the i9 Sports home office, we couldn’t have been better trained or more prepared to operate our own business. From the beginning, everyone involved with i9 Sports has been more than willing to help us solve problems and grow our business.

What inspired you to start your business?
Quite simply, my husband, Alex, and I wanted to own our own business. We wanted more control and the flexibility to create our schedule around family priorities.
When we looked into owning a business, we determined that joining a franchise business was our best bet. And, considering Alex’s background in youth sports and community groups and my career helping young children as a school social worker, i9 Sports was the perfect fit for us.

How did you finance it?
We were lucky enough to be able to fund our franchise without taking out a loan or using any of our 401k funds. Alex and I had been planning to launch our own business for years and due in large part to i9 Sports’ affordable franchise ownership cost, we were able to fund our franchise with our joint savings and inheritance money passed down from family members.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?
Living in Miami, our Hispanic heritage and Spanish-speaking skills are vital components of our success. Many of our participating families and customers are Hispanic and are more comfortable speaking Spanish than English. Our Hispanic heritage allows us to relate and connect with families interested in our leagues much more effectively than other business owners who don’t share that heritage.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
We’ve been lucky, actually, and haven’t faced a lot of adversity or roadblocks as we’ve built this business. The i9 Sports business is relatively recession-proof and we truly understand how to market our business in the Miami area. This is our home – we know these people and often share similar backgrounds and cultural tastes, so it’s easier to market to and sell to our customers.
However, it hasn’t come easy – we’ve had to hustle and fight for our business and our livelihood. The adversity, though, is minimized because we've put our heart and soul in a business that we love. My husband and I are best friends who motivate each other each and every day and we have a strong support group from i9 Sports that helps us push through tough times.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
Our biggest challenge has been keeping up with the competition and ensuring we are doing everything possible to keep our customers happy. It’s takes a lot of discipline to do the customer research necessary to stay on top of new trends and ensure we are satisfying customer needs. This is a daily challenge that consumes most of our time but we make it happen because we know how important it is.
Additionally, it has been a challenge to develop relationships with schools and other organizations that can help drive seasonal registration for our leagues. However, the i9 Sports home office helps us compensate by being ahead of the game as far as the traditional and online marketing support they provide us.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
If I could change one thing about our business, it would be to increase the size of our territory. We love this business so much that we wish we could reach out to more families in more communities. We will be ready and willing to expand if and when additional territories become available in the greater Miami area.

What was your childhood ambition?
My original ambition was to work as a social worker and I devoted my career to this working with kids at schools. I loved working with families and kids and enjoyed providing them with therapy and other services. While I did love helping people lead better and more rewarding lives, the daily grind of that demanding career burned me out.
When Alex and I decided to own our business, we both wanted to continue helping people but in a way that allowed us to focus on our family’s happiness and well being, too. That’s exactly what i9 Sports allows us to do every day.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
1. i9 Sports Owner, Greg Weinbrum – Greg is the Broward, FL owner and he has been our mentor since joining the i9 Sports family. He has always given us fantastic advice on how to make it as an i9 Sports owner and has been there for us anytime we face a tough challenge. He is a savvy owner from whom we’ve learned a great deal.
2. Five Star Jewelers Owner, Jorge Carvajal – Our dear friend, Jorge, built Five Star Jewelers from scratch. We learned a lot watching him turn a new concept into a multi-location success story. We admire his ambition and his unwavering drive to succeed.
3. Independent Photographer, Carlos Barquin – I speak with Carlos almost every week because he’s as devoted to goal setting and creating a vision for the future as I am. His visions and ideas are very creative and it’s helped my husband and I develop innovative solutions to tough problems. Like Jorge, he built his own business in Miami from scratch and has made it a success.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
In my opinion, breakfast is most productive because all parties are motivated and ready to act on ideas. In the morning, we are excited to start the day and are more open to new ideas. Plus, you have the whole day ahead of you to make progress and build off of good ideas.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success? For more than a year, I worked multiple jobs in order for us to open our i9 Sports location. Each and every day, I worked as a social worker throughout the day, took care of the kids in the late afternoon and evening, and spent my nights helping Alex with operational tasks associated with our i9 Sports business. This clearly took its toll on me personally and professionally, but it was well worth it to become a part of the i9 Sports family.

What is your favorite quote?
"It's who you know." There’s no ignoring it - the more connections you have in the community, the more people you know, the better off you'll be. If you know people in influential positions, you're more likely to be successful.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
No – it's natural for us. It's what we are supposed to be doing. We were hungry to own our own business and control our own lives. In fact, being “conventional” would be harder.

Biggest mistake made?
We've made A LOT of mistakes getting this started, but we've surrounded ourselves with such great connections/resources that we've been able to fight through. It's been difficult to ensure that each parent, coach and kid affiliated with our programs lives up to the i9 Sports standards. At the beginning, we let too many people slide and it had a negative impact on our program. Now, we are much more strict about our rules, regulations and philosophy and it’s working.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
I guess you could consider Alex and I innovators. We are always networking with other professionals in Miami and are eager to discover new and creative ways to run our leagues. We aren’t afraid to shake things up or try new tactics if we believe it will have a positive impact on our business.

About the company
i9 Sports®, based in the Tampa Bay, Florida area, is the first and fastest growing franchise of youth sports leagues, camps, and programs in the United States . An i9 Sports league is in your area and growing strong. With more than 550,000 members nationwide, i9 Sports offers the most popular team sports for boys and girls ages 3-14 with a focus on fun, safety, and good sportsmanship.
Because each league is individually owned and operated by carefully screened and certified local franchise owners, participants enjoy the many benefits of a well-organized national sports organization with a personal touch in the local community.
Entrepreneur Magazine ranked i9 Sports #256 in the prestigious Franchise 500® issue and the 15th Top New Franchise in America; while the Franchise Business Review named i9 Sports the #1 Sports, Recreation, & Fitness franchise.
CEO Frank Fiume founded i9 Sports from his passion for youth sports and a desire to create a fun alternative to other youth sports leagues.

Yolanda Schon > www.seniorhelpers.com

2012-09-06T16:08:00.000-04:00

Yolanda Schon, Owner & Founder, Senior Helpers

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

Becoming an entrepreneur requires a lot of personal and professional sacrifice but it’s worth it.

What did inspire you to start your business?

I opened my Senior Helpers location based on the experience I had with my aging mother that came to live with my family after my father died. I wanted to make sure other families in our area had better senior care options when they faced the same situation we did.

How did you finance it?

I invested everything I had in my Senior Helpers location. I invested all of my savings and a mortgage on my house.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?

Oftentimes, I feel like being Hispanic is a detriment to my business. I have an accent, and people are often turned off when they hear it.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

I face a lot of adversity as an independent business owner but I’m able to keep going due to the undying support from my loving family.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

My biggest challenges are the prevalent mentality among potential customers that in-home care should come at little to no cost and the strict state regulations I face in Florida.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

There are some instances where families I speak with only consider price when making a decision about caring for a loved one. As someone who personally understands how important it is to provide elderly loved ones with attentive and delicate care, I wish more people would realize that the needs of the client are more important than just the price.

What was your childhood ambition?

I always wanted to be my own boss and I’m happy to say I’m living my childhood dream each day!

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

All of the entrepreneurs I admire are local heroes and family friends and my dad is certainly my hero. I learned a lot watching him. Anytime something went wrong for him, he had this innate ability to pick up the pieces and start all over again. My uncle had a similar influence on me. It was exciting watching him and my Dad both create empires based on their own ideas.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Definitely breakfast.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

I wouldn’t consider myself a success (yet) because I have very high expectations of myself. However, I have to say being on call 24 x7, rarely enjoying weekends, and having little time for a personal life is tough.

What is your favorite quote?

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” - Michael Jordan

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

I don’t know how people see me but I consider this whole experience pretty natural for me as I have always planned to own my own business.

Biggest mistake made?

Not starting my own business earlier! This is what I was born to do – I should have been doing it long ago.

Do you consider yourself an innovator?

Why? You might say I am an innovator because I looked for the opportunity to do something new and different. But in reality, I consider myself a “re-novator” because I took a business model that was already in place and have altered it so that it fits my local market. I like being creative with a proven and established business concept.

About the company

Senior Helpers connects professional caregivers with seniors who wish to live at home as opposed to a nursing or assisted living facility. The company has nearly 300 franchises in 40 states and one Canadian province offering a wide range of personal and companion care services to assist seniors living independently with a strong focus on quality of life for the client and peace of mind for their families. Senior Helpers strives to be the leading companion and personal care provider that offers dependable, consistent and affordable home care. For more information, please visit: http://www.seniorhelpers.com/

Martha De La Torre > www.ElClasificado.com

2012-08-23T13:57:00.001-04:00

Martha De La Torre, Founder & CEO, El Clasificado

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

You need to love and understand your business, your employees, your customers, vendors and business supporters thoroughly. You also need to be able to take risks, be a multi-tasker, be visionary, be flexible, be ready to work extremely hard, make sacrifices and be able to focus on the Plan. The Plan is the business and marketing plan, that without, a business cannot succeed. You also need to have the support of your family and their willingness to also make sacrifices and work hard as a team to balance the goals of the business with the need for a healthy family life.

What did inspire you to start your business?

I was inspired with the growing Hispanic community in the 1980s that I observed as an audit manager while at Arthur Young and then as CFO of La Opinion. I started to see interesting acquisitions of Spanish language media by major general media companies. At La Opinion I learned that the major revenue source for the newspaper was the classifieds, mostly for employment ads. I was fascinated with the Pennysaver model and thought someone should launch a free classified paper in Spanish full of job and service ads but not be just a shopper. It should have short “how-to” editorials such as how to get your kids in college, how to get low cost medical services and how to become a US citizen, the types of editorials that would have made life easier for my parents when they first arrived from Ecuador in the 1950’s. My idea was to offer something free and easy to read to help Latinos learn to help themselves.

How did you finance it?

My husband, then fiancé at the time, and I funded El Clasificado from personal resources and raised additional capital from friends, family and a few investors. We estimated that we needed about $600,000, but raised only about $350,000. We plunged ahead anyway (to my husband’s dismay) and launched the undercapitalized company in 1988; we paid dearly for this mistake. My husband had to work two jobs to keep us afloat for about 10 years before we finally started generating positive cash flow. Neither of us took a salary for the first 10 years.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?

I was born in Los Angeles and grew up singing Home on the Range, eating apple pie and reading about the pilgrims and the wild west as a child. I went to Europe before my first visit to Ecuador when I was 15. Although I definitely considered myself American and barely spoke Spanish, I definitely considered myself Hispanic and bicultural. My parents became bilingual very quickly after arriving from Ecuador and wanted us to be good students, good U.S. citizens and speak English well. We ate Ecuadorean food during the week and Sizzler, Mexican or Chinese food on weekends. At family gatherings we listened to Latin music, danced cumbias, tangos and merengues but I listened to the Doors, Monkees and the Beatles on my transistor. I was definitely American but had a strong Latin culture. First I had never planned on being an entrepreneur let alone starting a business catering to the Hispanic community. Spanish speaking Hispanics were not a significant demographic group in my world until the 1980’s. I saw the boom and thought I could provide a needed service to this growing immigrant community. I thought it was a good idea to take successful products that serve the general market and tweak it for the Latino market, like the Pennysaver. I felt that my business and bicultural background was good training to launch a Spanish language version of this successful publication and that was the inspiration for El Clasificado.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

For me failure is not an option and commitments must be met. I could have gone bankrupt and gone back to the corporate world. But I could not face the vendors and investors, many family and friends, if I just gave up and walked away from my obligations. My parents, my education especially at LMU and my training at Arthur Young all were based on a foundation of strong core values an ethics. There was a time when I never thought I would see the light at the end of the tunnel, that El Clasificado would never become a viable company and that I would have to work for the rest of my life to pay off my debts. There is not a day that goes by that I take our success for granted. Now I have even more of a responsibility to succeed. We have 170 employees. These employees and their families depend on our success.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

Our biggest challenge is reinventing ourselves from being a “free Spanish language weekly shopper in Los Angeles” to becoming the largest Spanish language media company serving local marketplaces. Right now we meet that definition in most of California but we have a good chance of becoming this vision in all of the U.S. and Latin America. Now the biggest challenge is do we have the talent to take us there.

What was your childhood ambition?

I never wanted to be an entrepreneur. I just wanted to go to college, get a good job, have a family and be happy. These were simple but precious goals. I have to admit that I did want to do something significant. I just thought that whatever career I chose I would make a point to excel.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Definitely lunch. It is a more convenient time to meet during the day. An early lunch appointment allows you and your guests to complete a full morning’s work and be ready for a more relaxed meal. It is the perfect time to talk, get to know a client, learn more about their business, understand their needs, and find better ways to help them achieve their goals. I get up early and like to take care of my personal activities in the morning like a stimulating hike at 6 AM. Consequently, I go to bed very early and prefer not to go to dinners for business matters. I am not as alert.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

During the first ten years, my husband, Joe Badame, and I were constantly on the brink of giving up. We faced a severely undercapitalized business and the recession of the 1990s. At first we did everything: I was out selling and was also in charge of the accounting while Joe, who still maintained his consulting firm on the side, distributed magazines, designed ads in the morning and night. This he did while still servicing his clients from prestigious law firms throughout the country as a certified fraud auditor. We almost went bankrupt and did not take a salary for 10 years. We sold our car and home, and temporarily moved in with my father. Everything paid off at the end and we are happy to see a company that soon will exceed $20 million in revenues.

Biggest mistake made?

Sticking too long to our original business plan that said we were going to be home delivered just like the Pennysaver and that we were going to reach 90,000 circulation by 1989. Now I am very nimble in my leadership and management style. I think it is a key to our success.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

Definitely. I am always looking at what’s not working right in the company and looking for new solutions, especially outside the box, low cost solutions. We listen to our customer’s needs and desires and we embed it into our corporate culture to constantly improve our products and processes to find more efficiencies in order to provide better low cost media solutions to our market. We listen and watch trends but we follow our audience and give them what they want when they want it. That’s why we’ve created innovative digital and mobile products, grassroots events, special publications and niche websites to help our clients expand their reach to their target audiences.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I wish we were located in a more business friendly state and that public transportation was more readily available. I feel that being in California limits our ability to hire more talented employees, especially young employees that we can mentor. Labor laws are so restrictive now that it is difficult to take risks on inexperienced people that show promise but have no proven record.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

Steve Jobs – without Apple Computers we could not have launched a weekly publication with only $350,000 and we could not have turned this publication into a 46 zone 500,000 weekly generating close to $20 million today.

Scott Cook - without Quicken for $35 a year, we could not have managed our cash deficit company to success. With Quicken I always knew our cash position and worked with vendors in a transparent and honest manner to build trust and faith by making small but reliable installment payments on accounts.

Arthur Blank and Bernard Marcus - I love gardening and home decorating. I practically lived at Home Depot when we bought our first homes and could not yet afford a gardener or other help. I learned a lot about plants and am quite proud of my garden today influenced by my years spend in the Home Depot nursery.

What is your favorite quote?

Carpa Diem, Seize the Day!!

I also love the Serenity Prayer. My grandmother embroidered this prayer and framed it for me. I live by this. (No grudges, no regrets, don’t waste time on spilled milk just look forward and make things better when you can).

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

No, it is difficult to be conventional.

About the company

El Clasificado is a multi-media publication and advertising solutions company with advertising platforms in print, online and grassroots events. More than 1.5 million readers utilize the free Spanish-language publication every week. El Clasificado, a verified publication, is distributed in over 290 cities throughout Southern California and the Central Valley, and has a weekly circulation of 500,000.

The company’s flagship website, elclasificado.com, has become the largest classified website for Latinos in the U.S., ranking 8,600 with Quantcast, having 600,000 unique visitors per month and 9.5 monthly million page views.

Today, the company has been rebranded as EC Hispanic Media and generates revenues close to $20 million per year and has about 170 employees. EC Hispanic Media’s events division produces “Quinceañera Expo” which attracts 10,000 attendees annually, and the “Su Socio de Negocios” small business workshop series.

Patricia Gracia > www.PowerMediaGroup.com

2012-07-13T10:39:00.002-04:00

Patricia Gracia, Founder & President, Power Media Group

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
I believe that an entrepreneur must want to help other people. I realized early on this is a key point. I knew I had the sales perspective and drive; but I always wanted to be someone that can guide other people to succeed.

What inspired you to start your business?
Working here in the U.S. was an inspiration to me, I knew this country to be “the country of opportunities.” Since I was a child, I always had the desire and fire inside of me to own my own business. I also have always loved the media and the power it has within the population.

How did you finance it?
I started my business with nothing but a computer, a fax machine and a cell phone. I used those 3 items plus my enthusiasm and experience and began knocking on doors looking for clients. I knew that it was my time and I had to do it. My fiance, now my husband, Tony Gracia, offered to support me financially while I got the business up and running, it took only a few months. Three years later, the business had became so successful that he decided to come and work with me.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?
Absolutely! It is definitely and advantage. In 2001 after I graduated from UCLA, I realized the power of the Latino market in the U.S. and knew it would have amazing growth in the future. Since then the Latino population continues to grow by leaps and bounds. Our culture is very unique. When companies want to put something together for the Latino market, I know exactly how to put that message together and present it.
Why Should You Advertise in The Hispanic Market?
“It is clear that the Hispanic market is a force in terms of population and increasing Buying Power (1 Trillion Dollars) . Now advertisements require a unique feel, appealing to Hispanic values and preferences.”
US is the 5th largest Spanish-speaking country in the world.
The 2010 Census counted 50.5 million Hispanics in the United States, making up 16.3% of the total population.
The nation's Latino population, which was 35.3 million in 2000, grew 43% over the decade.
The Hispanic population also accounted for most of the nation's growth—56%—from 2000 to 2010.
Hispanics spend more than half of each day engaged with television, the Internet and technology.
The states with the largest percent growth in their Hispanic populations more than doubled: Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee and South Carolina. The Hispanic population also more than doubled in Maryland and South Dakota.
By 2020 the Hispanic population is expected to reach 70million and by 2050 one four Americans will be Hispanic
Most Hispanics live in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New Mexico, New Jersey, New York and Texas.
79% of Hispanics speak Spanish in the home, and 70% watch TV, listen to radio, read Spanish language newspapers and other media outdoors
Hispanics share strong commitment to family, religion and heritage
(Source: Us Census, Selig Center, Yahoo! and Experian Simmons)

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
I try to remind myself every day that the circumstances of your life are seen the way you take them. If you begin to feel opposition or segregated, then that is what you will find all around you. I try not to see those negative things in my life and just keep pushing forward. At the end of the day, we are all human beings.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
Challenges are a daily part of running a business, but the hardest thing for me has been having employees that are not focused on their jobs or willing to put in 100% effort. Our businesses are what they are because of our employees, so I want them to be focused and energetic and give their all.

If you could change one thing about your business what would it be?
To work less hours so I can spend more time with my children, Vanessa Gracia (9 years old) and Michael-Anthony Gracia (5 years old). They are my motto, my inspiration and my navigation system.

What advice would you give to new entrepreneurs?
The best advice I could give to someone is to just make the decision to start your business, and do it. So many people in the world have great ideas, but they live the rest of their lives with just that, an idea and never make it reality. I would encourage people not to be afraid of investing their time; look at it as gaining experience instead. Take the “what if” out of your vocabulary. The “What if” won’t take your dreams to the right direction.

About Power Media Group
Power Media Group’s main objective is to satisfy client needs. We promise to exceed client expectations by identifying and implementing the most appropriate creative methods.
Power Media Group works to create, position, maintain and add value to each client’s brands. Power Media Group's strategic planning practices are backed by the experiences of those in the agency. This is a true partnership - where practical experience supports each client and project.
Power Media Group believes that advertisers exist only to sell a particular product or service; Power Media Group employs the best tools and marketing strategies to obtain optimum results.
For more info: www.PowerMediaGroup.com

Karla Iguina > www.MioRestaurant.com

2012-06-04T10:22:00.002-04:00

Karla & Manuel Iguina, Owners & Founders, Mio Restaurant

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Ganas! As with many other aspects of life, to be a successful entrepreneur one needs the will, passion, vision, and perseverance. Of course, you need to sell your vision to key investors.

What did inspire you to start your business?
Inspiration for our business grew from my husband passion of food, people and community. He has always been interested in the restaurant business and aspired to own his own after years of managing successfully other enterprises. But above all, we enjoy people! The diversity of serving a clientele in a city such as Washington, DC is exciting and invigorating. It keeps us creating and growing.

How did you finance it?
We presented our vision plan to investors. Two of them without hesitation turned our vision into theirs and quickly committed to our goal. That of course was matched our lifetime savings and here we are today.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?
Without a doubt, being Latino - owned influences our business every day. It is more than just delicious flavors and colors, it is about a work ethic and respect for familia.
Our restaurant name is Mio. (www.miorestaurant.com) The tagline to introduce Mio is “Mine, Yours, Ours… Salud!”. We have established a sense of community that you would find in our hometowns across the country or back in our home countries. This sense of belonging and (comunidad) community is particularly special as Mio is located three blocks from The White House and our clientele covers the spectrum.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
Familia. I have an amazing family! Today, married to a wonderful Puerto Rican man, my family includes my immediate kin in Mexico, my adopted family in Puerto Rico, and my darling baby boy.
But the family continues to grow as we keep adopting the friendly guests that frequent Mio. Thanks to our immediate and extended new family we have been able to get through thick and thin.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
I know that your readers can relate to this point – our biggest challenge was the economic down turn, especially in 2009. We made it through thanks to the financial restructure we underwent which was led by our keen knowledge of our client base.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
Mio is not an individual endeavor. Mio is enhanced by all – including Latin Vision’s readership and by those who visit and touch our establishment.
As with many businesses we continue to learn and evolve. We learn from our staff, our customers, our community.

What was your childhood ambition?
To create something that allows me to help others. I think We did it. We create jobs, we create a program to support foundations or different causes. We create delicious dishes, We create a unique menu…

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
Three… that’s nearly impossible to do! The backbone of this country are the small businesses throughout the nation. Especially when we are talking about Latino businesses. The country depends on Latinos who have been establishing businesses everywhere. It is about the paletero in Pilsen, IL, the IT start-up in San Jose, CA, and the taqueria in El Paso, TX.
We admire many but to mention one that stand out is Gloria Rodriguez from Comunicad.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success? The challenge continues to be balance. As Latinas we tend to believe that we must be “wonder women” and take on not just our careers, families, community, etc. - all at once. I know that like me, there are many women throughout the country that battle with this issue.
But don’t get me wrong, I am not complaining – I am fortunate to stand on the shoulders of giants who have propelled me to where I am today. I thank all who have and continue to support me, teach me, and trusted me.

What is your favorite quote?
La mejor manera de predecir el futuro es creándolo. "The best way to predict the future is to create it." Alan Curtis Kay. 1971, Abraham Lincoln use it as well.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
Unconventional? What does conventional look like? For us, with the diversity in our family (Mexican –Puerto Rican), with the locality of our business (Washington, DC), conventional does not resonate. We are defined by the beautiful combination of values, backgrounds, and visions that surrounds us.

Biggest mistake made?
There was a moment in time in which we had to reevaluate our focus and values. Today we understand that our Latino roots as well as our business vision must remain intact.

Do you consider yourself an innovator?
I had not thought of myself as such before but as we continue to evolve as a restaurant in the nation’s capital, I do think we are innovating. One idea I instituted in Mio to keep us fresh and dynamic and give back to the community is the concept of “Chef for a Day”. The premise is having a cooking aficionado serve as a “chef” for a special evening.
Each “Chef for a Day” helps promote the event as well as identifies a charity to receive a donation. Thus far we have raised over $47K for nonprofits. At the end, our success depends on the success of our community.

About the company
Our Restaurant is affectionately called the "Embassy of Latin America in DC," Since 2007 Mio has captured the hearts and palates of DC’s most influential Latin Americans with a convivial table and open kitchen culture.
Inspired by the Mio family of foodies who join us for dinner to connect with friends, culture and the flavors they left back home, we have set out to push the boundaries of traditional dishes with fresh creativity and are excited to share the launch of our “Cocina Abierta” concept with renowned Puerto Rican Chef and friend Giovanna Huyke as our resident Chef for 2012. Our new Cocina Abierta menu combines casual and familiar with creative and authentic.
Being Latin is not required to enjoy Mio but once here you will find that a part of you already is.
La Cocina esta Abierta!!
Menu Description: Urban Latin American Cuisine, casual dining setting.
Menu Price Lunch: $18 to $40 Dinner: $20 to $70

Leticia C. Rojas > www.leticiainc.com

2012-05-29T23:23:00.000-04:00

Leticia C. Rojas, President & Founder, Leticia, Inc.

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
In my opinion, the traits common in a successful entrepreneurial are initiative, discipline, an “eye” to spot high risk business opportunities and the proclivity or willingness to take on this a high risk venture, generally, for profit but also for personal reward.

What did inspire you to start your business?
When my parents emigrated from Cuba, my Father always worked as a truck driver. I grew up being very familiar with trucks and the trucking industry, the pros and the cons. I am a business person at heart with an inherent entrepreneurial free spirit. I like to think outside the box. I spotted various business opportunities in the trucking industry that were high risk and challenging but I firmly believed that I would be able to take on those challenges and turn them into what is today a successful business.

How did you finance it?
I am a lawyer by education and had been working for a while as a legal internist and this job gave me the opportunity to save some money and, fortunately, a loan from my parents.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?
Absolutely. I own a trucking company that hauls and disposes of all types of excavated materials from mainly from New York City construction sites. The trucking industry, as well as the construction industry, has been traditionally unsympathetic and even hostile towards women and, especially, Hispanic women. In battling these hurdles it is important not to lose sight of your goal, to consistently move towards that fruition of that goal even in the face of hurdles that sometimes appear insurmountable but it’s that strong entrepreneurial spirit that gives me the persistence to battle these hurdles and never allowing them obstruct my efforts.

In the face of adversity, how do decide to keep going?
Ironically, it is adversity that gives me the push to fight back. I don’t allow myself to crumble before adversity. Instead, adversity becomes a challenge that makes me even inherently more determined to battle and overcome, no matter how insurmountable it may appear.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced.
Discrimination as a woman and, particularly, as a Hispanic woman. It’s impossible for me to be part of the “boys club” that dominates the industries I work in. Personally, I don’t want to be part of the “boys club.” I want to be me, a Hispanic woman, enjoying success in the face of that discrimination.

If you could change one part of your business, what would it be?
Creating a level playing field in which my business can fairly compete with other companies.

What was your childhood ambition?
I always loved New York City and always dreamt of sometime living in NYC and being a successful woman in Manhattan, whatever my endeavors.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire.
Bill Gates: He achieved a great honor when he was admitted into Harvard yet his entrepreneurial spirit was so passionate and firm that he left his studies at Harvard to pursue his dream. Today we owe much of the computer world and its advances to Bill Gates. Thanks to Bill Gates we have the PC, Windows, Microsoft, among so many other contributions to society.
Richard Branson: This man is truly a fierce entrepreneur at heart. (1) He has enjoyed success in his endeavors as an entrepreneur, which includes more than 400 companies worldwide. He owns the airline Virgin Atlantic, he owns Virgin Music Records that has produced platinum performers such as Janet Jackson, Lenny Kravitz among so many others.
Hillary Clinton: Her tenacity and endurance in the face of terrible circumstances, one of which was definitely simply by being a woman. Her composure no matter is before her. Mrs. Clinton has consistently exhibited endurance and composure in the face of extraordinary circumstances yet has remained loyal to her goals and dreams.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch or dinner?
Definitely breakfast. Breakfast tends to be short and force you to get to the point of the meeting quickly.

What sacrifices in your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success? Without doubt my personal life and my personal family time. These have been the greatest sacrifices I have had to make in order to grow my business and be successful.

What is your favorite quote?
"If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies... Succeed anyway." Kent M. Keith

Biggest mistake made?
Employing family members. This is a delicate position for an owner of a company because some business decisions include reprimand and education. It is difficult and complex to discipline and even educate someone who is a family member because feelings and egos often interfere.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
Yes, I think I do, in fact, consider myself an innovator. I’ve attempted many times to locate other trucking companies owned and operated by a Hispanic woman in New Jersey and New York to no avail.

About the company
I am the sole owner and operator of my company, Leticia, Inc., and have been so for the last 18 years. Leticia, Inc. fully licensed by New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania to operate in the trucking and disposal excavated materials, including contaminated mater and even hazardous material. Leticia, Inc. is certified by several Agencies in New York and New Jersey as a Woman Owned Business and as a Minority Owned Business. After many years of persistence, dedication and a history of impeccable performance and service, Leticia, Inc. now enjoy industry goodwill and has received recognition and commendations within the trucking industry and the construction industry both on a local level, as well as a national level, including having the honor of receiving an invitation to The White House in recognition of my efforts and success as a Hispanic Businesswoman.

Jacobo Perez Lizaur > www.DonDiegoSanta.com.mx

2012-05-25T07:20:00.001-04:00

Jacobo Perez Lizaur, Founder & Owner, Don Diego Santa Tequila

What’s your best attribute as leader?
To succeed motivating my partners.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business? Of course, living and knowing my country, Mexico, and particulary the traditions and culture that are reflected in our products, is very important.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
Always with confidence in myself and others which permits me take action again.

What is the biggest challenge you have faced?
The death of my oldest son, who was my partner in this business.

If you could change one thing about your life, what would it be?
To have lived at the beginning of my marriage in Europe where I was invited to work with Danone.

What was your childhood ambition?
To help others, to learn from my father about business and to be succesfull in swimming competitions.

Tell us about three people that you admire?
Gandhi, the Queen Catherine of Aragon (Queen of England) and my father.

For meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
In my country it is customary to have business lunches.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success? To work very, very much, which also is a pleasure.

What is your favorite quote?
"Love others as well as you love yourself", Jesus Christ.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
Yes, it is. Because novelty can make people unsecure.

Biggest mistake made?
To have been excessively indebted in business many years ago.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
Yes, I have always wanted to introduce new products to the market and use new technologies.

About the company
Don Diego Santa Tequila was founded in 2001 by Roger Santa, my son Jacobo and myself. Our offices are located in Mexico and France.
The following is a summary of the evolution of our portfolio of services:
- Exportation of tequila to the USA and Europe.
- National and international marketing of wines, liquors, beers and food products.
- Development of business (consumer products) in Mexico, Latin America, USA and Europe.
- Consulting and implementation of:
Business strategies.
Introduction of products.
Opening high volume markets in different channels.
Marketing strategies (ATL, BTL, RP, On and Off Line)
Commercial outsourcing.

Frank Huerta > www.TransLattice.com

2012-05-17T15:05:00.000-04:00

Frank Huerta, CEO and Co-Founder, TransLattice

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
You need to want to make things work better. Usually this desire comes from some personal experience where you say, "I know that can be done better". You need a vision that what you do will help people or society in some way. You also need to be very resilient. You will get told, "no" a lot, and you need the capacity to keep moving forward. And after writing a great plan, getting funding, and coming up with what you think is a good product; you have to get lucky as well.

What did inspire you to start your business?
My first business, Recourse Technologies, was started because the company I worked at was hacked, and my partner and I wanted to build new tools and products to help defend against hackers. TransLattice started from my partner's vision that the current centralized application infrastructure was too complex and weighted down to support reliably future enterprise applications.

How did you finance it?
We have had a good relationship with DCM, a top Silicon Valley venture capital firm, and they have helped me finance multiple companies including TransLattice.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?
The main IT market is in the U.S. We aim to satisfy our customers no matter where they are and what culture they are from. That being said, the Latin American market is large and growing and will need TransLattice to help with that growth.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
You have to believe in yourself, your vision, and your team. You have people that count on you (employees and investors) to persevere through the tough times. If what you were doing was easy, everybody would be doing it. You know deep in your heart that your products and vision will unlock value for customers that they might not have realized was there before.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
Recruiting. Getting and maintaining the right people to move your business forward is always the greatest challenge.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
In a startup, things change all the time. That is part of the fun and the stress.

What was your childhood ambition?
I wanted to be a doctor. But I started a medical device company where I worked with doctors and researchers to develop a treatment for knee cartilage injuries. So I kind of got to fulfill my childhood dream.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
Bill Hewlett and David Packard for the ethics in their startup--the HP Way. Steve Jobs for his ability to build products to fit customers before they were sure they needed them. And I also go back to early great American entrepreneurs like Ben Franklin and Thomas Edison. So much of what we have in the country and the world today is derived from their achievements and inventions.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Dinner! I am not a morning person.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?
A lot, which is why you need an understanding family. My wife was 6 months pregnant when I left a very good job to start my first company. Then in 3 1/2 years I think I took 3 Sundays off.

What is your favorite quote?
"All glory is fleeting." From the movie Patton.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
Emerson said, "to be great is to be misunderstood." I always found this instructive. But I don't think I am way out on the fringe either.

Biggest mistake made?
Not trusting my instincts on a product and corporate direction.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
I am no Einstein, but I do consider myself to be part of the innovation process. Startups are all about innovation, and there is no other place that I would rather work.

About the company
TransLattice is the geographically distributed database and application platform company that provides data where and when it is needed, for enterprise, cloud and hybrid environments. This new approach to enterprise and cloud infrastructure results in significantly reduced costs and deployment complexity, while dramatically improving system reliability, scalability and response time.

Adriana Martinez > www.casamartinez.com.mx

2012-05-11T17:49:00.000-04:00

Adriana Martinez, President, Casa Martinez

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

I think that you need to have passion, drive, determination, and the enthusiasm to work as hard as it takes to achieve success. It also takes ability to think outside of the box and take risks.

What inspired you to start your business?

My family owns a factory in Mexico that produces the most wonderful unique salsas that I have ever tasted. After studying in the United States I realized that with my knowledge of the business policies and practices in the US I could take the family business to the next level. The thought of being able to grow my family’s legacy is what inspired me.

How did you finance it?

Casa Martinez is fully funded by the family business in Mexico.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?

Of course it does, Casa Martinez rests on a foundation of rich culinary traditions and ancient recipes from our Mexican heritage. I am Hispanic and the principals and values that I was taught from a young age are the core elements that drive our business. Values like striving for the best, believing in yourself, and being proud of who you are and where you come from are an integral part of my business.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

There are always going to be obstacles to surmount, and challenges to face, but I just keep my eye on the prize. Having a positive attitude towards work and life has allowed me to see things in a clearer way and act in the best suited manner.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

The biggest challenge I’ve faced has been taking charge of my family business and introducing the brand to the United States. There are so many brands and my main concern was to make everyone aware that our brand of salsas stands in a category of its own.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I would not change anything. I am fortunate to have had the sounds advice from my team of advisors from the very beginning. Having a strong support system with a clear and fresh vision led me to take the right decisions, and up to date, there are no decisions that I regret making.

What was your childhood ambition?

I wanted to be an artist. I love painting and I have been doing this since I was a little girl. However that little girl has grown up and although I can appreciate art, my fulltime ambition is to become a successful businesswoman known for introducing unique and high quality products.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

There are several entrepreneurs I admire, but there is one in particular that I would like to mention: my father. He has been my mentor and the person who has taught me the most about business. He's trained me to be strong, driven and not to give up no matter what the circumstance.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Definitely breakfast! It’s when I’m the most alert, refreshed, and ready to take on whatever may come my way.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

Anybody that owns and runs a company has to make sacrifices in their personal time. It’s a given that running a business consumes much of your personal time. However, I am ready and willing to make those sacrifices because I believe in Casa Martinez and in our products.

What is your favorite quote?

What you dream today, will be yours tomorrow.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

It’s all relative. Am I unconventional because I am a woman entrepreneur, because I have a product that comes from another country? The United States is a melting pot of cultures, ideas and opportunities. It is only difficult to be that if you don’t have the vision to create something exceptional.

Biggest mistake made?

Thus far we have been very careful to not make mistakes, because everyone knows mistakes have a cost. My team of advisors and I have been done rigorous and careful planning to anticipate possible oversights and prepare ahead in case they should arise. As a new entrepreneur, I am aware that there will be some mistakes along the way and all I can do is to be humble, learn from them, correct them and move on. Isn’t that what every successful business person has done in the past?

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

I consider myself an innovator for the simple fact that, I, as a young entrepreneur; have decided to start a high quality, all-natural salsa brand to the American natural foods marketplace.

About Casa Martinez

Casa Martinez rests on a foundation of the rich culinary traditions and ancient recipes from our Mexican heritage. Our salsas are expertly crafted from fresh and flavorful ingredients to create extraordinary varieties that will enhance the everyday enjoyment of any appetizer, entrée or side dish.

Ana L. Flores > www.LatinaBloggersConnect.com

2012-03-15T16:40:00.000-04:00

Ana L. Flores, Founder & Ceo, Latina Bloggers Connect

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

A vision and the desire to really, really want it. It is that desire that will keep you going through the inevitable bumpy moments.

What did inspire you to start your business?

It was a series of events that lead to it. My first enterprise was SpanglishBaby.com, which I co-founded in February 2009 with Roxana Soto. SpanglishBaby was born out of the need to fill a void that existed back then of blogs and online content that spoke to the experience of being a Latina mom in the U.S. Through the online and social media experience acquired with SpanglishBaby, I started to be sought after by both brands and bloggers to help them connect. Through the encouragement of colleagues and fellow bloggers, I decided to launch Latina Bloggers Connect. The heart of the vision there was to create a space where bloggers could connect with each other and with the brands that matter to them, as well as to provide resources for our community to continue to grow. Our motto is: “If one grows, we all grow.”

How did you finance it?

Both of my ventures have been self-financed, making it an even bigger adventure and learning process. I’m proud to say both are self-sustainable and growing at a steady path. I do plan to seek capital soon, though.

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?

100%. Both SpanglishBaby and Latina Bloggers Connect are completely based on the Hispanic/Latino experience and culture. We are creating content that honors our language, heritage and culture.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

It’s now always easy, but I keep reminding myself that everything does happen for a reason. Years ago I decided, because it is a decision you can take, to see obstacles only as opportunities to grow. Once you change the way you see and react to situations, you let go of having those potential “problems” control you.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

The biggest challenge is definitely being self-financed and bootstrapping it along the way. I’ve always been both a connector and a content-creator, not a business-minded person. I take pride in the fact that I do have great ideas and I have a knack for being ahead of the game and at the right place, at the right time. However, the lack of financing slows down my pace since I can’t easily execute those ideas with out the proper resources and team.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I would have a real office and not a virtual one! The idea of working from home is a romantic one, but in reality it’s much more conducive to creativity to be in a room together with like-minded people.

What was your childhood ambition?

Hahaha! To meet Menudo! And I did, then many years later I ended up working with several of them and becoming friends when I was a producer at Univision. Aside from that, my ambitions were always to be independent and self-sustainable.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

Willa Shalit, founder of Fairwinds Trading.

Jeannette Kaplun, TodoBebe.com

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Breakfast. I’m usually in less of a hurry at that time.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

I’ve had to sacrifice time with my 4 year-old daughter and with my husband. I keep reminding myself that even though I travel more than I’d like, I still have created a life for me that allows pockets of time when I need them for my family without having to ask permission from anyone. I have set limits on myself and will not work when my daughter is home with me. What gets difficult is the traveling.

What is your favorite quote?

“It´s always darkest before dawn.” It´s a proverb.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

I can´t have it any other way, so I wouldn´t know. Maybe it´s difficult when trying to make more traditional people, like family, understand why you would go through all the trouble of living a seemingly chaotic life when I could be successful in a safe office environment with a regular paycheck.

Biggest mistake made?

Talking to the wrong person about my next move.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

I do, yet I realize that ideas belong to all of us. Having an idea doesn´t make you an innovator, realizing it does. The concept behind Latina Bloggers Connect wasn´t new; yet back in 2010 I was the first one to apply that model in the Latina blogosphere. That was innovative enough that many soon followed.

About Latina Bloggers Connect, Inc

Founded in November 2010, Latina Bloggers Connect, Inc was the first brand/blogger network catering specifically to Latina bloggers, the fastest growing group online.

A women-owned and operated boutique agency, LBC specializes in crafting brand alliances and campaigns for bloggers and brands to connect in meaningful and effective ways.

LatinaBloggersConnect.com is the site to visit to find out what’s happening and who’s who in the influential Latina blogosphere, as well as a place for our community of Latina bloggers to keep learning and growing as professionals and reap the rewards.

Don't miss Ana L. Flores speak at our 2012 Marketing to Latinas Conference, followed by Business Networking Event, on June 14th in NYC. To register click here

Norma Almanza > www.TheYaGroup.com

2012-03-09T09:11:00.000-05:00

Norma Almanza, Owner & President, The Ya Group

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Confidence, determination and not being afraid of failure.

What inspired you to start your business?
The challenge and desire to do what I love and in my own way.

How did you finance it?
A small investment of $1,500 of my own money.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?
Absolutely. As an American born Hispanic, I understand the U.S. Hispanic market. It’s a melting pot of many groups and it takes a level of comprehension to properly communicate effectively to each of these segments. It’s not just about knowing the language - it’s about knowing their cultural traits.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
I look at adversity as an opportunity. It makes you stronger. If you see it any other way, you won’t succeed. In this economy, it’s standard operating business.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
There’s no one to blame but yourself. You don’t have a boss - you have clients. Evolving with clients and staying on top of the newest trends for clients is challenging. When I started my business everything used to be TV, Radio, Print and community outreach. Now it’s all of that plus social networking and the internet.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
Nothing. I enjoy the daily challenges.

What was your childhood ambition?
To be an artist and to help people.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
Trump for his business savvy and confidence in his skills; J. Lo for her talent, versatility as a business woman and never forgetting her roots; and my parents for teaching me about business and raising me in an entrepreneurial environment. They came from Cuba in the 60’s with nothing except courage and a commitment to living in a free society. They were both business owners and invested in real estate.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Lunch and a fun round of golf.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?
I never had to make any sacrifices on my personal life; my husband has encouraged me to grow in business. Both he and my children have always been very supportive of my business ventures.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
It’s all relative, isn’t it? What is your favorite quote? “It’s easy to make a buck. It’s a lot tougher to make a difference.” – Tom Brokaw Biggest mistake made? I never look at it as a mistake but as a lesson learned.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
Yes because I am constantly creating new ideas. Every client, every product, every consumer is different.

About The YA Group
The YA Group is a multicultural marketing communications agency that specializes in the US Hispanic market. With over 25 years of experience, The YA Group is made up of strategic thinkers who understand marketing goals, objectives, tools and techniques. We know and live the culture that is needed to effectively communicate with urban Hispanic consumers. As trends change, we know what’s hot – and what’s not. Most important is our deep understanding of the things that don’t change: the emotions, aspirations, values and personal relationships that are part of the unique Hispanic culture. A company is defined by leadership and commitment of its employees. I’m fortunate to have an elite team of experienced marketing professionals and resources that I can access in a minutes notice. The company has helped a wide range of clients create recognizable brands and messages that translate to the Hispanic community.

Andrew P Laine > www.espanolseguros.com

2012-02-27T09:45:00.001-05:00

Andrew P Laine, Founder and CEO, Espanol Seguros

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

Entrepreneurs face challenges on a daily basis and often times have to overcome obstacles that seem near impossible. With this said, in order to be an entrepreneur you need a tremendous amount of self-confidence and passion for your venture. If you are missing one or the other, making it through some of the tough days will be impossible.

What did inspire you to start your business?

Business has always been a passion of mine and when I saw an opportunity within the online Hispanic community, I knew it was time to start on my own. Being directly responsible for the success or failure of the company early on was inspirational and kept me moving forward day after day.

How did you finance it?

From the start, we financed the business on our own and bootstrapped our way to where we are now. We are just reaching the point where we are speaking with investors to bring on additional capital to accelerate our growth. I think that working with your own capital teaches you how to be frugal and respect every purchase you make.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

When I faced challenges early on, I relied on my passion and confidence for what Espanol Seguros is trying to do. I am also stubborn and hate to admit defeat!

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

Our biggest challenge as a company has been the decision to raise additional capital. On one hand you want to grow your company organically and hold on to as much equity as you can, but on the other hand you know that raising additional capital could be a catalyst to grow your company at an exponential rate. We struggled with the decision, but are now happy with the decision.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I think Espanol Seguros has the opportunity to not only serve the US Hispanic population, but serve other Spanish speaking countries in the international community. We receive a tremendous amount of international traffic to our websites and have been working to get programs in place to service these consumers, but we are not there yet.

What was your childhood ambition?

I always wanted to be a fire fighter!

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire

First and foremost, Shawn Nelson of the company Love Sac (the furniture company). I saw his story on national news one night and reached out to the company, he ended up responding and was an inspiration. Guy Kawasaki is another entrepreneur whose books and website have been a wealth of knowledge and incite for me, I really like his business style. Lastly, I have to pay respect to John Rockefeller for being one of America’s original entrepreneurs.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Breakfast… There is nothing like starting off a day with a good meeting.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a

business success?

Time and capital. When you start your own business you and your family eat, breath and sleep it and sometimes you have to make decisions to put the business first. It’s not easy, but as long as you have the support of your loved ones, it’s bearable.

What is your favorite quote?

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” - Steve Jobs.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

No. If you are an entrepreneur, it is in your blood in one form or another.

Biggest mistake made?

In the beginning, our focus was not as disciplined as it should have been. We wanted to be in every lead vertical like online education, online finance instead of being focused on our core competency. This wasted a ton of capital and hours upon hours. I heard a great quote that sums it up, “Great baseball pitchers wouldn’t be great Football nose tackles.” Find your strength and focus on it.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

Yes and no. There is nothing new about the lead generation industry, nor about creating educational content sites. What is innovative is our approach and our focus on the Hispanic community. Our goal is to serve the Hispanic consumers in a comfortable environment and to give insurance providers a way to reach our growing population.

About Espanol Seguros

Espanol Seguros, also known as Spanish Insurance, LLC, was founded with the goal to connect the Hispanic population with bi-lingual service providers. Espanol Seguros, (www.espanolseguros.com or www.spanishinsurancellc.com) with a portfolio of more than seventy Hispanic targeted domains across multiple verticals and little competition, is poised to capture the majority of this growing traffic and serve a vital need for both consumers and lead buyers. With educational content targeted towards Hispanic consumers, in both English and Spanish, Espanol Seguros is able to convert more hits to sellable leads.

Toni Calderon > www.casusmanagement.com

2012-02-21T12:33:00.000-05:00

Toni Calderon, President, Casus Management

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

You need to have a lot of patience and never loose sight of your long term goals, even when the odds are against you, you need to stay focused and get through the hard times. Realistically things don’t happen over night and you will have a lot more failures than successes, but you have to keep planting seeds and preparing yourself because eventually the opportunity that you have been waiting for will come by and you need to be able to not only recognize it, but take advantage of it. Being an entrepreneur is not only about coming up with new ideas, no matter how unique or innovative your concepts are, if you don’t sacrifice and work hard they will never become a reality.

What did inspire you to start your business?

I’ve always had a passion for motorsports and after working directly both with drivers and teams I noticed an opportunity to fill a gap. There was an important untapped market specifically dealing with Hispanic drivers, and Hispanic motorsport marketing and I saw the opportunity with my experience and connections to be one of the firsts to take advantage of it.

How did you finance it?

Savings, part time jobs, and credit card debt.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?

Yes in a big way, being bi-lingual bi-cultural has opened many doors in my business and most of my services are based on this experience. It is part of the nature of what we do and it is one of the main factors that set us apart from the competition, it also opens the door to a lot of unique business opportunities.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

If you believe in what you are doing and you have set the foundation to be successful then you must keep going. If there is an opportunity out there then eventually somebody will take advantage of it, whether it’s you or somebody else that held on longer and worked harder.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

Staying a float during a recession. Motorsports is a luxury and it was severely hit by the economy, and being a start up at that time made it very difficult. But making it through also created many opportunities, as a lot of the competition did not survive.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

Less traveling.

What was your childhood ambition?

To be a race car driver.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

Ricardo González – He is one of my clients, after retiring from racing at a young age, he focused on creating a very successful multi-million dollar insurance company in Mexico. With the added free time and resources that this gives him he has now come back to racing and has become an extremely successful driver, winning championships and now competing at the highest levels of endurance racing in the world, while still managing to maintain and grow his business back at home.

Zack Brown - He is the founder of Just Marketing International which is the most successful Motorsports Marketing firm in the United States.

Malcolm Gladwell – Through his books and lectures he has become an inspiration to millions around the world who like myself have learned to see and understand the world a little differently thanks to his research and his writing.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

If in the US dinner, if in Mexico lunch.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

I have been on the road for years, constantly traveling and sacrificing important social aspects back at home, but at the same time being present and active in the industry, which has been a key to success.

What is your favorite quote?

Luck is when preparation meets opportunity

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

Yes but not as difficult as I imagine being conventional would be.

Biggest mistake made?

Not properly training the right staff when the opportunity was there to do it.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

No because most of the separate services that we offer don’t reinvent the wheel or are something that someone else couldn’t offer. The difference is that we’ve taken a variety of these services and brought them all under one umbrella, what makes us unique is the full range of assistance that we can offer our clients which they would otherwise receive from multiple sources.

About Casus Management

Casus Management is a motorsports marketing company focused on driver management, sponsorship and B2B development, and PR representation. We offer these services for general market, but are mostly focused on Mexican drivers competing internationally, and in developing marketing and activation programs to help increase the Hispanic motorsports fan base in the United States, and create communication channels for companies who are looking to reach this market through motorsports. We currently represent three out of the four Mexican drivers competing internationally in North America.

Our clients include:

Drivers: Luis Diaz (American Le Mans Series), Ricardo Gonzalez (World Endurance Championship), David Martinez (American Le Mans Series) and Davy Jones (GRAND-AM).

Teams: Conquest Racing (American Le Mans Series, IZOD IndyCar Series).

Series: Mission Foods GT3 Cup Trophy USA by Car Amigo

Leslie Class > www.lccareers.org

2012-01-20T13:11:00.001-05:00

Leslie Class, Founder, Learning Curve Career Center (LCC)

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

First, you must have an idea with the patience see it develop and dedication to make it grow. Then, you must have the absolute determination and mindset not to fail. Lastly, you need the vision to see every obstacle as a learning brick for you to build on.

What did inspire you to start your business?

I took vocational training and became a Medical Assistant in 1994. For almost 20 years, I have been building my career as a healthcare professional. In 2004, I became an instructor in the field. Through teaching, I instantly developed a passion for helping others. The fulfillment that I gain by sharing my skills and experiences with my students is inexplicable. However, at that time, I was working for a (national) corporation that regularly markets these types of programs within lower income communities at an extremely inflated price. I witnessed many students deal with loan default and additional financial issues. I became unhappy with the recruitment practices of the institution and I was prompted to open Learning Curve Careers (LCC). I help others begin a career in the same way I did, despite any adversity. I teach students marketable work skills minus the exaggerated cost for the education so they can find meaningful employment.

How did you finance it?

I chose to work two jobs to help finance my dream initially. I currently own and operate a small paramedical company. Class1Paramedical allows me the time and flexibility I need to continue to develop my second business, Learning Curve Careers. I keep expenses down for LCC by forming partnerships with existing organizations.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?

In the New York metropolitan area, this type of career training tends to attract a lot of students, many of which are Hispanic. All potential students are seeking employment training that prepares them rapidly for work. Typical students tend to be female, single parents, underemployed or newly unemployed. The ethnic and racial diversity of the students is similar to that of the surrounding communities. They often have additional socio-economic problems. Many students have jobs, children, and childcare issues, transportation problems, debt and credit issues, and/or lack of self-confidence. I am a Puerto Rican female born and raised in here in New York. I have experienced teenage pregnancy, single motherhood, unemployment, and a lot of economic and personal struggle. I was a victim of domestic abuse, and I am a mother to a child with cerebral palsy. I can relate to my consumers. I believe my experiences and adversities have given me the strength to work for progress, to continue to aspire for more, and the struggles help give me the insight that I need to provide a better product to people that I serve.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

I am blessed with a very strong sense of self. I believe in my work, I am proud of what I have accomplished, and I know I am capable of even more, so I continue moving forward and growing. I believe in myself.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

Financing is always a huge concern, but I continue to be innovative in my planning, and things are slowly working themselves out, just as they always do.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I want what everyone wants for his or her business; I want to see faster growth. I want to reach more people.

What was your childhood ambition?

I always wanted to run my own business, to be my own boss.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

I truly admire people who have the determination to build, develop and ultimately realize their dreams. Those are the type of people that effect change in the world. First and foremost, I have always admired my father, Reinaldo Class. He was a successful Latino businessman in the field of electrical contracting. Nancy G. Brinker – is the founder of Susan B. Kolman Foundation, who began this foundation in her living room. Sean Carter, or “Jay Z” is an artist and self-made businessman. He has successfully ¬built his business into an empire.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

I think all time frames work for meetings, however meeting topics, and potential attendees should determine what time of day might be most appropriate.

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

I have sacrificed spending money and my personal time. I only purchase what is really necessary and I work a lot so I don’t feel that I have enough time to spend with my family.

What is your favorite quote?

Here is only one of many: “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” - Harriet Tubman

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

No. It’s the way I’ve always been.

Biggest mistake made?

I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. Therefore, I don’t believe in mistakes, only lessons, it’s all how you choose to look.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

I do consider myself an innovator because I choose not to sway in my determination. When I face a challenge, it causes me to be more innovative in my thinking so that I can accomplish whatever it is that I want to do. I like to figure out a problem my own way.

About the company

Learning Curve Career Center (LCC) offers training programs focused in allied healthcare. They are specifically designed towards helping economically challenged members of our communities, those seeking additional job skills, and students aspiring to begin careers in the healthcare field. The training is affordable and prepares students rapidly for certification and employment as a healthcare professional.

The programs empower people and prompt self-sufficiency through job training and placement assistance. We have a variety of classes that focus on the specific skill sets necessary to succeed in a number of different careers. We hope to improve the level of professionalism throughout our neighborhoods and also to expand the available opportunities for residents.

www.lccareers.org

www.facebook.com/learningcurve.careers
www.twitter.com/#!/LCCAREERS

Diego Saez-Gil > www.inBed.me

2012-01-03T04:15:00.001-05:00

Diego Saez Gil, Co-Founder & CEO, inBed.me

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

You need irrational optimism, the ability to create a vision and convince others to jump on-board with you in the journey (partners, employees, investors, customers, etc.), and most important you need a strong passion about what you want to create.

What did inspire you to start your business?

Seeing how some people had transformed our world for the better by enlisting talented teams and executing ideas that seemed crazy at the beginning, always inspired me. I always dreamt with doing something with positive impact in the world. At some point I realized that starting a business may be a way to do it.

How did you finance it?

Initially I financed it with my savings and my credit card, when I ran out of money I started working in the side to keep going. At some point we raised investment, not only for the money but also for the contribution that the investors could bring to the business with their experience and connections.

Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?

I think it does in a positive way. Being from Latin America makes me more flexible and creative, maybe because of the uncertainty that we are used to in our countries). Plus we are naturally really passionate about everything we do, which as I said I consider essential to be an entrepreneur.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

I believe that adversity is part of every journey to achieving meaningful things. Therefore, when the adversities arrive I realize that they are just part of the journey, and that I need to keep going to realize my dreams.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

The biggest challenge was to keep going when you get rejected several times in a row by investors or partners. There is a big dilema between accepting outside feedback and sticking to your own vision, between pivoting or persevering. We persevered in the main assumptions but pivoted in the strategy and model to grow and keep going.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I would like to do more, faster. But sometimes things take time, and one have to be patient.

What was your childhood ambition?

My childhood ambition it was to travel the world. That's why I started travel-related businesses. :)

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

I admire Steve Jobs for the passion he put on everything he did. I admire Richard Branson for the craziness he brought to the business world. I admire Alec Oxenford (that I'm fortunate enough to have him as a mentor) for thinking big from Latin America and building global companies like OLX and others.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

I like breakfasts, but everything work for me, as long as you do good business. :)

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

The first years of building a business requires a lot of hard work, focus and travel. Because of that I don't spend all the time I would like to with my loved ones, nor I can spend time doing things I love like playing music, helping others, or traveling for fun. I hope that at some point the business will be more estable and I'll be able to have a more balanced lifestyle.

What is your favorite quote?

"Wherever you go, go with all your heart".

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

I love to be unconventional. For example, I happen to have an accent wherever I go (even in Argentina, because I am from the north) which makes me unconventional, and I find out that it has a positive impact in new people I meet. :)

Biggest mistake made?

I made a lot of mistakes in business, I could do a long list!, but they have been an amazing source of learning, that I am capitalizing now.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

I am proactively trying to think different and do things in new ways, not only on the design of the products we ship but also they way we work together with the team. Therefore I do consider myself an innovator.

About the company

inBed.me is a social booking platform for social travelers. I allows users to connect with peers going to the same destinations while they are booking a hostel or bed & breakfast to stay. Users can see who else will be staying at each place and find out travelers with similar interest, allowing them to connect to share tips or even plan activities together. Our company wants to make the process of booking online more fun and social.

Priscilla Stephan > www.sweetpathwellness.com

2011-12-28T20:38:00.003-05:00

Priscilla Stephan, Owner, Sweet Path Wellness

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?

A powerful vision, a strong support group, some start-up capital and a great business coach.

What did inspire you to start your business?

The desire to help others live healthier, happier lives, the freedom to design a lifestyle that gives me joy and enables me to spend time with family, to travel and to also take care of myself.

How did you finance it?

My savings. Fortunately starting a health coaching business isn’t as capital intensive as many other businesses.

Being Hispanic…Does it have any influence on your business?

Absolutely. I think that the Hispanic community is still very underserved when it comes to health and wellness and I’m passionate about showing them that being healthy isn’t as hard or as complicated as it may seem. My motto is: small changes = big results.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?

I have a strong vision which is to inspire and empower thousands of people worldwide to live healthier lives in a body they love. I can’t stop while knowing that there are many people I can touch, support and guide to wellness.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

In the beginning it is always about creating a steady stream of clients. However, I truly enjoy building long-lasting and mutually beneficial relationships and know that with time they will lead to increased revenue.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

I’d want my reach to be larger so I could be helping even more people.

What was your childhood ambition?

To become a concert pianist. As an adult, it was a big “aha” moment when I realized I needed to incorporate more creativity into my life to keep me happy and inspired.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?

Steve Jobs because he was unconventional and a trailblazer; Tony Robbins because he was a pioneer in the coaching field and Oprah because she empowers women to live their best life.

For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?

Lunch

What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?

Work long hours. I’ve also done a lot of personal development work to get to where I am now and I’ve loved every minute of it.

What is your favorite quote?

“If you don’t create change, change will create you”. – Anonymous

Is it difficult to be unconventional?

No. It’s the most fun and genuine way to be. Difficult is trying to be something other than who you really are to please others. Be true to you, believe in yourself and never give up.

Biggest mistake made?

Starting my first business without capital or know-how of business and the fashion industry. While it cost me dearly, I learned so much about my personality and what not to do the second time around that it is a blessing to me now.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?

I like to expand the vision of what’s possible for myself and others so in that sense I believe I’m a non-conformist. Also, I think that the concept of holistic health is still new to many people and it allows room to be creative.

About the Company

Sweet Path Wellness (www.sweetpathwellness.com) supports dynamic corporate executives and women entrepreneurs who want to lead overall healthier and more balanced lives. We coach women through 1-on-1 and corporate wellness programs on how to eat for energy, have more work/life balance, lose weight and design their “sweet life”. What makes my company unique is our holistic and comprehensive approach to wellness. This means that we not only look at nutrition but also support our clients to make positive lifestyle changes. I am also a speaker and guest writer for online and print publications.