| 10 Things Latinas Need to Know To Start Their Own Business |
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| El Monte, CA -December 5, 2007 |
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| Interview opportunity with Maria de Lourdes Sobrino, Founder and CEO of Lulu's Dessert Corporation and the author of Thriving Latina Entrepreneurs in America who has written the following article: |
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| 1. Commit to quality: |
| From the onset, a commitment to quality is needed since a business fail if the product or service you are offering does not meet or exceed the standards held by the customer you are trying to sell your product to. |
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| 2. Latinas are setting records: |
| According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, only about 50 percent of small businesses succeed in their first five years. However, keep in mind that Latinas are opening businesses in record numbers. You can become one of those who succeed! |
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| 3. Get an education: |
| If you have the opportunity, go to school. If you are unable to attend classes, you can still gain practical experience by working part-time, full-time, or even interning for businesses similar to the one you'd like to start. |
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| 4. Read avidly: |
| Along the same lines as going to school, reading newspapers, magazine articles, and biographies of successful entrepreneurs will also prove beneficial, allowing you to learn how entrepreneurs handle the challenges of starting their business. Some publications that are especially helpful for Latinas include Entrepreneur Magazine, Latina Style Magazine, Hispanic Business Magazine, Hispanics, Inc., Latin Business, Fortune, and Forbes, among others |
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| 5. Plan: |
| As a Latina entrepreneur, you will need a plan to avoid pitfalls, achieve your goals, and build a profitable business. Once you have a business, make sure you prepare a good five-year strategic plan, then evaluate and revise it every year. |
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| 6. Network: |
| Learn the value of networking. While I love to attend conferences around the country to meet other CEO's and learn from their experiences, you can network anywhere from the grocery store to a business organization. |
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| 7. Have a savvy banker: |
| Creating a good relationship with a savvy banker is imperative since finances are one of the hardest aspects of running a business. Having someone who understands finances and has your best interest in mind always helps. |
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| 8. Certain personal attributes are necessary: |
| Here are some of the characteristics I believe are indispensable when you want to start your own business. Vision, curiosity, passion, self-confidence, focus, creativity, determination, intuition, desire, leadership, and innovation are all necessary ingredients in a potential entrepreneur. |
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| 9. Understand that success is not automatic: |
| A business is like someone's life; it has ups and downs, and even sick days. It is not strictly based on luck-although a little never hurts. It depends primarily on the owner's foresight and organization. |
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| 10. You benefit the most: |
| Here is the last set of thoughts I'd like to leave you with: The hard work and long hours directly benefit you, the potential for growth is great, a new venture is as exciting as it is risky, and there are endless challenges and opportunities for learning. But most of all, when you start your own business, you set your own hours; you can do what you want, when you want, and how you want. |
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| About Maria de Lourdes Sobrino and Lulu's Dessert |
| Lulu's Desserts was the first business in the United States to offer ready-to-eat gelatin desserts and it was born out of one Latina's desire to bring a little bit of Mexican tradition to the U.S. "Everyone knows that the one dessert you can find in most homes in Mexico is gelatin in a variety of flavors," says Maria de Lourdes Sobrino. "I knew that if I could make it convenient for families to eat, selling it would be easy." At first Sobrino, sold Lulu's Dessert from her car-traveling to small, 'mom and pop' markets in Southern California. Later she found a distributor to bring her products to supermarkets. Today, Wal-Mart is her largest retailer carrying her products. |
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| Today, Sobrino enjoys not only the success of being a successful business owner but also the recognition of serving as a role model. Harvard University included Sobrino in a traveling exhibit of Enterprising Women, "The Business Women of America: 1750-2000, 250 years of History of American Women Entrepreneurs." Sobrino was included with 40 outstanding women in business-like Oprah Winfrey and Meg Whitman. |
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| Her new book about her experiences and that of other successful Latinas: Thriving Latina Entrepreneurs in America is in bookstores now. "I am extremely honored that I had the first company like this. Basically, I started an industry that didn't exist and it wasn't until eleven years later that Kraft entered the market of ready-to-eat gelatin and puddings. I have felt so special when women reach out to me for inspiration. I am part of a significant contribution that many Latinas are giving to our economy." |
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