Ramona Ferreyra: The Latina entrepreneur promoting Hispanic heritage and culture through micro-fashion

For Ramona Ferreyra, showing pride in your heritage and community starts at an early age.

A Dominican-American born and raised in the New York City borough of Manhattan, Ferreyra said her family had a strong commitment to making sure she and her siblings connected with and upheld their Dominican culture. For example, as a child, Ferreyra would often participate in heritage festivals and parades, perform in front of crowds, and take dance classes at the request of her mother.

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Albania Rosario > www.uptownfashionweek.com

Albania Rosario, Founder and CEO of Uptown Fashion Week and Creative Director to Fashion Designers of Latin America (FDLA) Interviewed by Laura Rosado

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?  
A decision to take your own path and make a difference.

What inspired you to start your business? 
I noticed the lack of Emergent Latinos in the NY Fashion Week and the Industry as a whole.

How did you finance it?
I was willing to put in every dollar I owned in to make it happen and I learned how to raise financing in different ways.

Does being Hispanic/Latina have any influence on your business? 
Yes and No. The diversity is mostly a challenge, being a young Latina in this country comes with its own obstacles that I had to overcome, For example, English not being my first language was and still is very challenging. No, because the nuts and bolts of running a business disregard your background.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to drive ahead?  
All I look for is creativity. The designers I work with know that NY is the Fashion Capital of the world, we must bring creativity and unique styles and always keeping our roots involved.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced? 
The lack of others not being able to see my vision. 

If you could change one thing about your business. What would it be?
I wouldn't change anything, building my own path as I go and see how much we have grown feels very exciting. 

What was your childhood ambition?
To be able to leave a legacy for my family and our future generations.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire.
Tony Robbins
Oprah Winfrey 
Fern Mallins 

For business meetings, which do you prefer: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Breakfast, early In the morning when you are fresh and full of energy.

What sacrifices in your personal life did you have to make in order to become successful in your business?
Time for family and personal life. In general, I sacrifice now so I can have freedom later. 

In addition, I'm married to my career. There is no 9-5 when you are becoming an entrepreneur, you just go and keep going until you get it. 

What is your favorite quote?
"Do not and the take criticism from someone who has not constructed anything."

The biggest mistake made?
Everything Happens for a reason.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
Totally.
I broke into an industry that's has been well-established way before me, and brought in a fresh perspective. 

Description of the company
FDLA  — What has become the signature multicultural fashion event of New York City, FDLA founded its development on providing exposure for established, emerging and upcoming clothing designers from around the world in an effort to extend meaningful fashion trade. Accomplishing this has been an undertaking in nurturing opportunities for the publicity of international talents whose creative abilities are overflowing but financial resources are not.

FDLA prides itself on continuing its work throughout the year to build bridges engaging community inclusion by leading events, social activities and diversity initiatives. 

FDLA THE SHOWS
With the top-notch guest list and international media coverage, FDLA reaches a multitude of consumers and continues to grow each year.
Last season’s show in September was a major success, providing to the fashion community that FDLA must be considered a player in the New York City world of fashion and around the world.

FDLA is fast becoming the place to be for socialites, celebrities and those seeking to discover the next big name. 

With a number of designers bringing new thoughts and ideas from around the world, FDLA has now established itself as a crucial stop on the fashion circuit around the world bringing Latin Designers to international platforms around the world such as South Korea, Switzerland, Dubai, and counting...

America is missing out on a $1.4 trillion Latino business opportunity

That's the finding of a recent report by the Stanford Graduate School of Business that surveyed roughly 1,800 businesses owned by Latinos.

Latino entrepreneurs are extremely active. Latinos opened 86% of all the new businesses created in the U.S. between 2007 and 2012, according to Remy Arteaga, the lead researcher. But they lagged non-Latino businesses in how much revenue they brought in -- $155,806 in 2012 versus $573,209, according to the most recent U.S. Census data.

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First Down Funding Connects Clearly With Spanish and Latin American Business Owners

WASHINGTON, DC , Jan 25, 2016 (Marketwired via COMTEX) -- First Down Funding has quickly established itself as one of North America's premier alternative lenders for small and medium-sized businesses, with an adaptive model and wide range of merchant services designed to assist businesses at all stages -- from those just being founded to the well-established that are seeking to expand. In addition to reliability, stellar financial advice and excellent customer service, First Down Funding (FDF) has also been known for their flexibility, often able to get clients approved and funded within 24 hours. Now, in accordance with their mission to provide financial assistance to business owner in need, First Down Funding has announced the creation of their Latin American Sales Division for the U.S. and Canada featuring agents and executives fully fluent in Spanish.

With their numerous years of industry experience, the lending experts at First Down Funding are all too familiar with the challenges small and medium-sized business owners regularly face. For new business owners, acquiring the initial start-up capital is of course one of the largest. Banks often freeze out promising entrepreneurs by demanding the type of security and collateral that no individual founding a new business will have, or else will offer loans with outlandish interest rates. Existing business owners are also faced with similar hurdles. Ironically, they will often find it difficult to obtain loans to implement the very improvements necessary to achieve the kind of profitability banks and other traditional lenders require before offering a manageable loan. With all these challenges, the last thing an aspiring business owner needs is difficulty in securing a loan due to a language barrier. Having already addressed the financial aspects by approving 85% of applicants for one of their fast, affordable and flexible loans, First Down Funding is now ensuring that Spanish speaking entrepreneurs can just as easily take advantage of their vital services.

The United States was recently shown to have 41 million native Spanish speakers and 11.6 million bilingual individuals -- which is the second largest population of Spanish speakers in the world second only to Mexico. While its numbers are certainly lower than the U.S., Canada has also been shown to have quite a large number of Spanish speakers. With the considerable size of this demographic, it was clear to First Down Funding that to give every entrepreneur an equal chance, it was necessary to institute a Latin American division. So far, the response has been overwhelming as Spanish/Latin American clients have finally found a reputable lender than not only provides fast and affordable loans with personalized service but also ensures ease of communication in their preferred language. One such client enthusiastically stated: "Working with First Down Funding is an incredible experience. They are currently helping out my tenants as I own several shopping centers across the East Coast. Speaking Spanish has always been a problem as the language barrier can create difficulties, but with First Down Funding, they found a way to make it work!" Another Spanish speaking client, currently the owner of four Outback Steakhouse restaurants, expressed similar sentiments: "Every hurdle I have [been] faced with in the past was no issue at all...I have traveled my entire life and finally have found the right mix of financial help with First Down Funding."

First Down Funding is a Washington DC/Maryland based company specializing in structuring and approving cash advances for small to medium-sized businesses. With affordable rates, transparent fees, fixed payment schedules and a fast and simple process that allows 30 second applications and funding within 24 hours, they allow business owners throughout the US and Canada receive the funding they need when they need it. The experts at First Down Funding also provide valuable financial advice and give each client the attention necessary to create a personalized solution.

SOURCE: First Down Funding

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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Hector Dominguez > www.thedigitalunion.com

Hector Dominguez, co-founder, The Digital Union

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
You need to have controlled fear.  It would be easy for me to say that in order to be an entrepreneur you need courage, tenacity and to be fearless.  All those attributes are a given and often utilized to inspire people to do the same.  I believe, however, that it often times discourages people that might be on the brink of entering their own entrepreneurial experience.  While it is true that you need to have courage you also need to have the ability to control the fear of failure and use it to your advantage.  This doesn’t mean you should not take risks.  It just means that you can’t forget those that depend on you in order to drive you to over perform.  In my case, I started my first company well into my 30s after leaving a great job as an IBM executive.  I was driven by the fear of failing and having to face the people that assured me I made the wrong move to leave a great job to face the unknown.  This fear was not debilitating in any way but a way to get inspired to work a little harder, a little smarter every day.  Entrepreneurs should recognize that this road is not easy and fear is a great asset when you managed to use it to your advantage.

What inspired you to start your business?
I was inspired to start Digital Union in 2011, after I agreed to sponsor an event for DiscoverHope, a nonprofit providing microcredit loans and education to women in the northern Andes of Peru. I was immediately drawn to the DiscoverHope mission, but when I learned that all of their Board of Director’s were non-Hispanic white, I felt guilty and angry at myself for being so disconnected from the needs of others, especially Latinos in poverty, who were being helped through DiscoverHope. The anger inside me helped me to quickly get involved in the organization, where I came to know the Founder, Maggie Miller, who soon became my Digital Union partner.

Maggie and I wanted to combine our worlds. With her experience building and fundraising for nonprofit organizations for nearly 20 years, combined my experience as a tech entrepreneur and executive management background, we thought we could use our skillsets to inspire business leaders and create social impact. We wanted to help companies be an active part of solving issues. We soon formed Digital Union, and have never looked back.

How did you finance it?
Digital Union was started using our own funds.  It is hard to raise money when your product is based on new, unproven methodology.  For the first two years, we actually performed our services pro-bono for a myriad of industries in order to prove our methodology.  This investment proved to be key to our success as we now work around the world with companies that want to create meaningful social issues using their core skills and strength.

Does being Hispanic/Latino have any influence on your business?
Our culture puts a lot of value in human interaction. We like to get close to people in any situation.  When you use this skill in business it really makes a difference.  Most of my business discussions are at least 50% about personal matters.  I like to get to know the people and care about them at a personal level way before we talk business.  When done genuinely, business flows a lot smoother.

Our culture is known for being passionate, caring and hard working.  It is in our social DNA and in our business it is a definite asset. With the current political situation, it is important to show what we can do to advance ourselves, our communities and our country.  We are all Americans and want the rest of the country to know we are contributing in major ways to the advancement of our economy and society.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to drive ahead?
You can’t forget or lose focus of why you started your own business in the first place.  I still have not met a single entrepreneur that is not passionate about their company.  In my experience, surrounding myself with successful entrepreneurs helped me realize I was not alone in this journey.  Successful entrepreneurs have failed and recovered and their experiences have taught me that there is always a way to move ahead.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
What Digital Union does is so new that the hardest challenge was convincing company owners and executives that they could alleviate social issues while their business reaps benefits from it.  Once we were able to prove that many business issues could actually be solved by building social impact strategies, our business started to grow. 

If you could change one thing about your business. What would it be?
Honestly, I only wish I could have started this business earlier.  We found the formula to help the world and businesses while making money.  However, everything happens for a reason and the experience that I gained from over 15 years of working in the tech industry and from building and growing my first company (Verdtek.com) gave me the tools that I utilize every day to grow this business.

What was your childhood ambition?
I wish I had a magical answer for this question.  Honestly, I was never great at one thing.  But I do thank my parents for pushing me to try new things.  I had the fortune of being exposed to many sports, musical instruments, other languages, etc.  All these experiences helped forge the person I am today.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire.
Steve Jobs for his innovative vision.  Elon Musk for his disruptive thinking. Benjamin Franklin for being a jack of all trades and never giving up.

For business meetings, which do you prefer: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Happy Hour.  I love connecting at a personal level before we talk about business.  I enjoy people when they are open about who they are and their motivations.

What sacrifices in your personal life did you have to make in order to become successful in your business?
While building my first company I went through a divorce.  The time, effort and focus on the business made me lose focus on other parts of my life.

What is your favorite quote?
My favorite quote is by a Mexican historical figure named Benito Juarez: “El respeto al derecho ajeno, es la paz”.  Which means that peace happens when people respect other people’s rights.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
Absolutely.  It is very hard to swim against the current, especially when others don’t believe you are going to be successful.  I always advice young entrepreneurs to have a good balance in their close circle of friends and family.  You should always have a mix of positive people, negative people and everything in between. 

Biggest mistake made?
My first job during college was working at Dell in Austin doing tech support.  I got stock options and awards.  I had no clue what that meant.  I ended up selling stock in the early 90s that would be over $60M now.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why? 
I do now.  However, I did not use any innovation when I built my first company, Verdtek, Inc. Verdtek is a technology consulting services company.  We were merely trying to offer high-end technology services at lower prices which is nothing unique.  With Digital Union, we definitely innovated by building the methodology to walk companies through building their own social impact strategies.  When they follow our methodology they will create programs that impact the world while their companies reap the benefits of having elevated brands, elevated image, increased employee attraction/retention and higher revenues.

About Digital Union
The Digital Union helps companies merge purpose and profit. As a social impact consulting firm, the company guides businesses through creating and implementing social impact strategies that align with business objectives.
During the past decade, corporate philanthropy became commonplace, but today it is evolving from simple giving into strategic programs that inspire and unite stakeholders, while generating competitive advantages.
Digital Union’s five-step approach modernizes traditional CSR program by using client’s core capabilities to generate impact programs that create financial and social profits. Throughout the process of working with Digital Union, clients are offered clear goals and guided steps to ensure impact programs support core business objectives, including employee engagement and retention, investor relations, and community relations.
To date, the company has helped more than 75 for-profit companies develop impact ideas that integrate stakeholder systems and are authentic and transparent. Digital Union was founded in 2012 and is based in Austin, TX.

MBA Entrepreneurs From Top B-Schools Raise $62bn In Venture Capital

Start-up companies founded by graduates of 25 top business schools have raised $62.8 billion in venture capital funding, according to a BusinessBecause analysis of data from PitchBook, a VC and private equity research firm.

PitchBook compiled a ranking of the top global universities and business schools for VC funding.

Top of the MBA list is Harvard Business School, whose 557 entrepreneurs have raised $6.7 billion for nearly 500 start-up companies. One Harvard venture, Oscar Health Insurance, a US health insurance company that utilizes technology and data, raised $327 million, valuing the start-up at $1.5 billion

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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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Rosie García >www.IconMediaAgency.com.

Rosie García, CEO & Founder, Icon Media Agency

What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Loyalty, Respect, Dedication and Love.

What inspired you to start your business?
The ability to be as creative and flexible to meet the needs of my clients with no rules or regulations or politics.

How did you finance it?
Through independent contracts with individually chosen clientele.

Does being Hispanic/Latina have any influence on your business?
Yes. Being an experienced Latina in the industry grabs the attention of mainstream clients that want to target the Hispanic market as well as the existing participants that want to expand to the Latino market.

In the face of adversity, how do you decide to drive ahead?
I'm very observant.  I stay open minded and work with the wisdom and knowledge I've been blessed with everyday.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
The biggest challenge is knowing how to reveal at first sight the receivers versus the believers.

If you could change one thing about your business. What would it be?
I don't know.

What was your childhood ambition?
To show the world the value of humbleness and the passion of the ambition of fulfilling a dream.

Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire.
Sofia Vergara, Oprah, and Jennifer Lopez

For business meetings, which do you prefer: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Lunch. It's brief and right to the point.

What sacrifices in your personal life did you have to make in order to become successful in your business?
I haven't been able to have a personal relationship.

What is your favorite quote?
Neo: What are you trying to tell me? That I can dodge bullets?
Morpheus: No, Neo. I’m trying to tell you that when you’re ready, you won’t have to.

Is it difficult to be unconventional?
No as long as you remain focus on your goal based on your own experience and instinct. It's always good to have the two mentors in two different divisions of your field of business, in my case the accountant and the creative. Not more then two. 

Biggest mistake made?
Not starting my own company sooner.

Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
Yes. Because I believe in the impossible. 

About the Company: 
Icon Media Agency caters to celebrity talent bookings on major TV networks and nationally syndicated radio segments. "The Luis Jimenez Show", Univision, Telemundo, Viacom, SBS, Music Choice etc. We hold the key to developing and cultivating the careers within the mainstream, Latin and Urban artists. Specializing in consistently generating a diverse fan base via social media, TV, radio and print promotion. From the management of press junkets for concerts, conferences and client events to implementing strategic market tactics to engage clients through exposure of cultural diversity. Icon Media Agency is the voice for todays entrepreneurs and tomorrows entertainers.

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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Americanizados and Hispanos Lead the Growth of Hispanic-Owned Businesses and Self-Employment

Latinos are introduced to an entrepreneurial spirit and an enterprising nature during childhood. Good deeds and chores done well are rewarded with coins, or the coveted $1 bill. And summer time means earning "spending money," garnered by spending hours mowing lawns, selling lemonade, peddling candy and cookies, or unloading once-loved toys at garage sales.

The innocent desire to earn pocket change matures, and those children later become entrepreneurs who developed much-needed Hispanic businesses, helping to spur economic growth in U.S. markets.

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