Female Founders Fund On Why Investing In Female Talent Matters

It’s an exciting time to invest in extraordinary female talent.

Founding Partner Anu Duggal knew this when she established New York City-based Female Founders Fund in 2014. The early-stage venture capital fund’s strategy then is the same as it is now. Female Founders Fund proves exceptional returns can be generated by investing in companies founded by women.

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To These Shrewd Business Owners, Being Latino Is a Huge Advantage

As President Trump sends another 5,000 troops to the Southern border to help fend off a caravan of asylum seekers, you might think being Latino in America would be something of a handicap. But you'd be wrong.

"I use the fact that I'm Brazilian, that I'm [Latina] to my benefit," says Junea Rocha, co-founder and CEO of Brazi Bites, a line of Brazilian cheese-bread snacks based in Portland, Oregon, and No. 219 on the Inc. 5000. For her, being a Latina woman gives her the ability to stand out from a sea of white males--a common sight when she goes to sales meetings--and has allowed her to grow her company's annual revenue from over half a million dollars in 2014 to more than $12.9 million last year.

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Hispanic Entrepreneurship Could Mean $1.4 Trillion Boost to U.S.

Laura Jimenez knew she was worth more than she was making, so she started her own business to prove it.

The Texas native opened Rockville, Maryland-based FireClean, an emergency cleaning and restoration service, in 1996 at the age of 27 after doing similar jobs for others. Jimenez took pride in the quality of her work and thought becoming her own boss would strengthen her family’s finances and allow more time with the children.

Employers “were not paying me what I was supposed to get paid,” Jimenez said. Even though the work is difficult and the hours long -- her current crew of six is on-call nights and weekends -- Jimenez says, “I love what I do.”

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Spain-US Start-up Competition

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What it’s like to be a Latino entrepreneur in Silicon Valley

SAN JOSE, Calif.—Alex Murillo leans forward in his seat, sipping coffee from a shot glass and waving his hands as he talks. He points to the screen of his MacBook Pro, explaining the genius behind Audive, the mobile application he is developing that allows users to record cover songs and mix tracks with music enthusiasts around the world.

“This is the secret sauce,” says Murillo, hitting a key on his computer that fills the air with the sound of a man singing in Italian. “You can bring in vocals from a guy in Italy or you can bring in the flamenco guitar from Spain.”

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Aspiring Hispanic Entrepreneurs Find Opportunity

The face of the nation is changing. The Census Bureau announced last week that Hispanics have surpassed blacks as the largest minority group. And in about 30 years, Hispanics will be the majority in Ttexas.

Many cities are now looking forward-- helping out Hispanics today who want to build successful businesses for tomorrow.

"I see more and more hispanic people every day." says Maricela Aguilera.  They come right into her store, Gonzalez' Gro

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The Best And Worst Cities For Hispanic Entrepreneurs

Hispanics and Latinos now make up the largest ethnic minority in the U.S. By 2050 they will constitute a third of the country’s population, according to census figures and their impact in business continues to grow. Latinos today account for more than 70,000 of the country’s CEOs and the number of Hispanic entrepreneurs has tripled over the past twenty years – surging from around 557,000 in 1992 to over two million in 2012, according to a report by the Partnership for a New American Economy.

Together, they brought in an estimated $486 billion in revenue, says the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

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Baton Rouge among America’s best cities for Hispanic entrepreneurs

Data collected by researchers at WalletHub, a website that helps small business owners make financial decisions and save money, shows there is a growing demand for Hispanic-owned businesses in the U.S.

According to WalletHub, Hispanic-owned businesses contributed approximately $486 billion to U.S. revenue in 2013.
As of this year, Baton Rouge is the ninth-best place in the country for Hispanic entrepreneurs to make a living, according to WalletHub.

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Franchise Business Opportunities a Growing, Viable Path for Hispanic Entrepreneurs

DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla., Sept. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Coverall North America, Inc., a leading franchisor of commercial cleaning businesses, is a viable option for aspiring Hispanic entrepreneurs interested in starting a business. Franchised business owners have found that being your own boss and having a flexible schedule to spend more time with loved ones are the benefits of ownership.

Of the 8,000 Coverall franchised business owners worldwide, 25 percent of them are of Hispanic descent.

National Hispanic Heritage Month Sept. 15 – Oct. 15, was enacted into law in 1988 to celebrate the history, cultures and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. Sept. 15 is significant because it serves as the anniversary of independence for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.

"Coverall offers people the opportunity to become their own boss and take control of their future," said Rick Ascolese, CEO of Coverall. "We wish all of our business owners continued success as they operate their businesses for themselves and their families."

From Mexico, Robert Yepez started a Coverall franchised business eight years ago. Over the years, his business grew exponentially. Today, his franchised business services nearly 250,000 square feet each month.

Alan Landaverde, another Hispanic Coverall Franchised Business Owner, is originally from El Salvador. Landaverde worked in the aerospace industry for 25 years before changing his career path and starting a commercial cleaning franchised business. Like many business owners, Landaverde wanted the freedom of owning a business and more time to spend with his children.

Mercedes Cisneros moved to the U.S. in the 1980s and later started a Coverall commercial cleaning franchised business. She has owned her business for eight years growing it through customer referrals.

Coverall franchised business owners cite customer service and going above and beyond expectations as keys to their success.

"When a customer calls we do everything we can to help," said Yepez. "There is no task that my team cannot take on."

Coverall has been recognized with numerous awards for its franchise opportunities. Recently, the franchisor was named by G.I. Jobs as a 'Hot Franchise for Veterans' and was also named to USA Today's 'Top 50 Franchises for Minorities' list in 2013.

Learn more about Coverall franchise opportunities visit http://www.coverall.com/tufuturo

Report: U.S. Hispanic entrepreneurial growth dramatic

The number of Hispanic entrepreneurs in the United States has grown exponentially over the past two decades and Hispanic immigrants in particular have a higher rate of entrepreneurship than the U.S. population at large, according to a report released Tuesday by The Partnership for a New American Economy and the Latino Donor Collaborative.

The study, “Better Business: How Hispanic Entrepreneurs Are Beating Expectations and Bolstering the U.S. Economy,” released in Miami during a panel discussion and press conference, showed that between 2010-2012 the entrepreneurial rate declined overall in the U.S., but among Hispanics the rate shot up, said Jeremy Robbins, executive director of the partnership, an organization of 500 government and business leaders who support immigration reform.

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40 Top Latinos in American Media

This has been a really great year for Latino talent in American media. But before we get into the details of a year in Latino media excellence, I want to first share how this list comes together every year.

Methodology 
Like most media events in digital times this list of top latino talent begins on Twitter. Friends, fans, family, and especially colleagues of excellent Latinos in media recommend them to @vato, me. I add all of the recommended Twitter handles to a private Twitter List that I build and monitor throughout the year in Tweetdeck.  I have created a Collection in Tweetdeck for storing specific top Latino tweets for embedding  throughout next year's list, just as I have Alberto Ciurana's mighty tweet below.

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Hispanic Media & Marketing Agency, Omni Direct, Announces 15-Year Anniversary

Omni Direct, a leader in U.S. Hispanic direct response marketing, celebrated its 15 years of business this summer. Specializing in direct to consumer, brand, and digital marketing, Omni Direct was established in 1999 by Alex Agurcia.

Agurcia first founded Omni Direct in recognition of the growing but virtually untapped potential of the Hispanic market in the U.S. Prior to starting Omni Direct, he led Gold Coast Media as their CEO spearheading their rapid growth in the 1990s to become a leader in launching direct products and services to both the general and U.S. Hispanic markets. 

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Latino Entrepreneurs Get Ready to Pitch Their Startup Ideas at Demo Day Event in Silicon Valley

Manos Accelerator, a startup accelerator program with the vision to be recognized as an international hub in Silicon Valley where Latino entrepreneurs from across the globe can come to convert their big ideas into reality, is having six startup teams from their 2014 Summer batch pitch their ideas at an upcoming Demo Day event on Wednesday, August 27th, at Yahoo headquarters.

“From week one to week twelve, it has been great to see the overall development and progression of our 2nd batch of startup companies,” said Edward Avila, Co-founder and CEO of Manos Accelerator. “Part of what we do here is not only to assist these early-stage startups with their solutions but to inspire Latino entrepreneurs and have them see what is possible and to think big about what they can go do. We are also thrilled to have Manos be embraced by top-tier high tech companies in Silicon Valley like Yahoo and Google.”

Manos Accelerator is a tech accelerator that has partnered with Google for Entrepreneurs since 2013. It provides mentoring, training and investment connections for startup companies. Their 12-week accelerator program selects Latino-led startups and then helps to develop them into marketable, functional companies that are then displayed at the program-concluding Demo Day.

"Manos is building a strong community in Silicon Valley that nurtures and enables Latino entrepreneurs," said Mary Grove, Director of Google for Entrepreneurs. "Google is passionate about helping build inclusive communities with diverse perspectives and we support Manos' mission of providing resources and mentorship to help more Latino entrepreneurs excel globally. The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in the Manos community."

These companies that have been selected and developed under Manos Accelerator’s program these last 12-weeks get ready to pitch their business solutions to a distinguished panel of judges on August 27th at Yahoo headquarters starting at 5:30 PM. Participating startups include Audive, CoupleCare, Cuestiona.me, FashionTEQ and saySquare. The event is a day of celebration that gives these startup teams the opportunity to promote their companies to a cross section of the Silicon Valley community that includes entrepreneurs, media, mentors and prospective investors. These presentations are a showcase of their business models and the great progress that have been made due to their participation in the Manos Accelerator program.
About Manos Accelerator, LLC 

Manos Accelerator creates a Latino ecosystem of entrepreneurs, mentors, industry experts, leaders and investors. Through a mentorship-driven program, it provides education, resources and guidance for promising startup companies led by Latinos. For more information, please visit http://www.manosaccelerator.com.

About Google for Entrepreneurs. 
Google for Entrepreneurs provides financial support and the best of Google's resources to dozens of coworking spaces and community programs across 125 countries. We also create Campuses: physical hubs where entrepreneurs can learn, connect, and build companies that will change the world. To learn more about Google for Entrepreneurs, visit google.com/entrepreneurs or follow us on G+ (+GoogleForEntrepreneurs) and Twitter (@GoogleForEntrep).

For Fourth Consecutive Year, Republica Ranked as One of Inc. Magazine's 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies in America

República, a leading independent cross-cultural advertising, digital and communications agency, today announced its inclusion once again on Inc. magazine's exclusive list of the 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America. Ranked at No. 3006, this year marks the fourth consecutive time República is included by the Inc. 5000. Companies such as Yelp, Pandora, Timberland, Dell, Domino's Pizza, LinkedIn, Zillow, and many other well-known names gained early exposure as members of the Inc. 5000.

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Paola Sanchez > www.expertlatinos.com

Paola Sanchez, Co-Founder, Expert Latinos

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Drive and determination. You need to make a decision that you are going to make it happen and work towards your goal until you make it a reality.

What inspired you to start your business?
Inspiration many times comes from being able to identify a need that hasn’t been met and my partner, Carmen Ordonez, and I saw the need there was for journalists and bloggers to connect with a variety of Hispanic experts/sources. Carmen’s experience as a journalist and blogger was what allowed her to understand that need for our specific market that not only helped reporters but in return helped the Hispanic experts by offering them free publicity every time they are mentioned or quoted in a media publication. Moreover, Carmen and I decided to partner up as we each bring different strengths to the company, Carmen specializing on Journalism and Public Relations and I specialize in Marketing and Advertising which makes us a strong team. With the inspiration and the perfect team, Expert Latinos was born.

How did you finance it?
Our company expenses have been very minimal until this point, so it hasn’t been necessary for us to finance Expert Latinos.

Does being Hispanic/Latina have any influence on your business?
Yes, completely! Both my partner and I are Latinas and our business is specifically for the Hispanic market which is why we decided to call our website Expert Latinos. Expert Latinos is a free online resource that connects journalists, bloggers and media professionals with Latino expert sources needed for their story, saving them time and energy. On the other end, it provides sources and PR professionals with the opportunity of free publicity.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to drive ahead?
By choosing to see adversity as lessons that life offers us in order to make us wiser. These difficult moments are the ones that make us stronger and more experienced for what is to come. When facing challenging moments, we all have a choice to see the glass half empty or half full, we just choose to always see the glass half full.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
The biggest challenge has been getting people to understand what our service is and how it works. This is tricky as if that message is lost or not delivered correctly; there is no foundation on which to create our business. That is why we’ve created and posted videos on our ExpertLatinos.com website in both English and Spanish explaining to people exactly what we are about which is a free service that gives Hispanic business professionals and entrepreneurs the opportunity to be mentioned as experts in media outlets such as Telemundo, Univision, Yahoo en Español, to mention a few.

If you could change one thing about your business. What would it be?
Having started Expert Latinos sooner! Expertlatinos.com went live April 1, 2014 and we’ve already had a great following and have received requests from strong media publications such as Univision, Telemundo and Yahoo en español in our first month looking for Hispanic professionals just like you and me. Can you imagine how long this free tool has been needed for to help our Latino entrepreneurs grow?

What was your childhood ambition?
My partner, Carmen, and I have actually known each other since we were kids and we’ve both always had the ambition to help people. As children, we weren’t always sure how to accomplish it, but we knew that we wanted to be able to make a change in people’s lives. Fifteen years later, we realize that we are accomplishing that through our business.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire.
Tony Robbins, Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson

For business meetings, which do you prefer: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Lunch. It’s more casual giving you the opportunity to connect on a personal level.

What sacrifices in your personal life did you have to make in order to become successful in your business?
Social time is very limited as when you choose to have your own business, you don’t really have a start time or an end time as you’re always thinking and working on ways to improve and add to your business.

What is your favorite quote?
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone” - Neale Donald Walsch

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
At times it can be, but if you want your business to stand out and be different from all of your competitors, guess what? You have to be unconventional.

Biggest mistake made?
We can’t think of our biggest mistake as it is just part of the mistakes that we’ve made along the way to help us form our business and our life. Mistakes are a part of our life and if we wouldn’t make them, we wouldn’t be human. They are the ones that allow us to learn the best way of doing things so that we can succeed in our business and in life.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
Yes! Innovators are those who ask themselves “how can I make it better? How can I help people and their business? And these are questions we both ask ourselves daily in order to offer the best in our business and any other business we provide.

Acerca de Expert Latinos
Expert Latinos is a free online resource that connects journalists, bloggers and media professionals with Latino expert sources needed for their story, saving them time and energy. On the other end, it provides sources and PR professionals with the opportunity of free publicity. This is a free and fast resource that is beneficial for everyone.

Journalists, bloggers and media professionals can easily post a request on Expert Latinos detailing the source they are looking to interview or quote in their story. The request is then distributed in a daily email alert directly to the database of Latino experts whom have subscribed to the service for free. If the expert is a match, they respond directly to the journalist or blogger through email. Expert Latinos is the perfect tool for experts, small business owners and entrepreneurs seeking to obtain free publicity and gain exposure. On the other end, it helps journalists find the expert source they need for their story, saving them time and energy. www.expertlatinos.com

Carmen Ordoñez is the co-founder.