KC Hispanic leader: Immigration reform will boost business

By Megan Hart

megan.hart@cjonline.com

No group will get everything it wants from immigration reform, but businesses still will benefit from the coming solution, according to Carlos Gomez.

Gomez, president of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City and a Topeka resident, spoke at the Topeka Independent Business Association’s lunch meeting Tuesday. Gomez said he would like to see a pathway to citizenship for the 11 million to 12 million people living in the United States who entered illegally, but he doesn’t expect that in the near future.

“It’s not going to happen,” he said.

Large-scale deportations aren’t likely either, Gomez said, and Congress is trying to find a middle ground that probably will allow some of the people who immigrated illegally to stay and work toward citizenship. That will be a boost for the economy, he said.

“That’s (for example), 5 million more people who can buy car insurance who couldn’t before,” he said. “That’s 5 million people who couldn’t get small-business loans before.”

Hispanics are the fastest-growing group when it comes to starting new businesses, Gomez said, and young females are leading business creation within that ethnic group. Like earlier waves of immigrants from Europe, most people from Latin American countries arrive in the United States with dreams and entrepreneurial inclinations, he said.

“A lot of people ask me what’s different about the Latino community,” he said. “The DNA of a small-business owner is the same.”

Spending also is growing among Hispanic consumers, making it important for businesses to learn how to reach them, Gomez said — and translating your fliers into Spanish isn’t the best tactic. Getting to know people in the Latino community through working with churches and nonprofit groups they value is more important, he said, because most people are loyal to businesses when they have a relationship with the owner and employees.

“At the end of the day, no matter the demographic, we’re all the same,” he said.

Business owners also need to recognize that there isn’t a monolithic “Hispanic” culture, Gomez said. People from Puerto Rico may respond differently to a certain message than do people from Mexico, he said, and even people from different states within Mexico may not have the same reaction because of cultural differences, making it doubly important to get to know your area’s community.

Though hiring employees who speak Spanish is helpful, hiring someone who isn’t qualified because he or she is bilingual is “the biggest mistake” a business can make, Gomez said. Businesses need to seek employees who have the right skills and show potential to grow, and having language skills is a bonus, he said.