Twenty-something years ago, Dr. Nelson Soler was working in economic development outreach at UW-Milwaukee and saw an increasing need: specific outreach to Latino entrepreneurs.
“There was no culturally and linguistically relevant programming,” he recalls. “So, we launched the Hispanic Entrepreneurial Center to address this gap.”
He then went out on his own, founding the Latino Entrepreneurial Network, a nonprofit to encourage and support people starting businesses – especially new Americans.
“We aim to bridge the cultural gap for individuals migrating from anywhere into the U.S. business culture,” Soler says. “It was focused primarily on Latinos, but we helped Burmese, Sudanese, Ethiopians, Iraqis over time.”
The Latino Entrepreneurial Network still operates in Milwaukee, hosting training sessions and seminars to help people from immigrant communities start businesses. It supports one of the most entrepreneurial-minded communities.
“Latinos are 34% more likely to start a business” than other groups, Soler says. “Latina women have led small business creation in the country for the last five years.”
Soler saw another need, too, to support both entrepreneurs and established businesses owned by Latinos, and launched the Latino Chamber of Commerce of Southeast Wisconsin (LCCSW) eight years ago.
“We offer coaching, training, and networking to bridge financial, human, and social capital gaps,” Soler says. “Our goal was to bridge the gap in what I call financial, human and social capital. There are ample studies that (show) minority groups, and especially Latinos, lack access to those three things. Seventy percent of Latinos finance their business with their own savings because they cannot tap into the banking system.”
To address that gap in financial capital, LCCSW serves as a microlender, offering small loans at an affordable 5.9 percent interest rate. “This commitment helps businesses secure needed funds despite economic fluctuations,” Soler says.
LCCSW serves businesses in eight counties, from Sheboygan all the way south to the Illinois border on the east coast of Wisconsin. It has offices in Milwaukee, Waukesha and Racine.
The LCCSW offers training and business accelerator programs, both for new startups and established businesses looking to grow. The training programs cover a broad set of topics, but focus on financial management.
“Our biggest focus is on understanding financials,” Soler says. “Many businesses struggle with basics like reading profit and loss statements and cash flow management. We address these foundational skills.”
Website: https://latinochambersew.org/
Address: 530 South 11th Street Suite 300A, Milwaukee
Phone: (414) 509-6179
