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While Silicon Valley has become synonymous with everything related to entrepreneurship, it is the growing number of small business entrepreneurs in underserved communities, including here in the Coachella Valley that have been energizing local economies today, creating jobs and striving to improve their peers’ livelihoods. Local enterprises – tire repair shops, neighborhood restaurants, local home-based child care and nonprofits supporting those with disabilities – are the unsung heroes of our communities.
They don’t often make headlines, but they are taking risks that are no different from those undertaken by a tech startup in the Bay Area.
This rings particularly true for the Hispanic community in the Coachella Valley.
Yet, the question remains: Will regions like the Coachella Valley ever be looked at as a fertile ecosystem for entrepreneurship?
Emma Quintero Dominquez, founder of Agencia Union Latina based in Cathedral City, a financial education agency devoted to the U.S. Latino community, is one of the many small business entrepreneurs serving the Coachella Valley.
Quintero Dominquez started her business to dismantle the social inequalities that the Latino community in the U.S. has historically experienced through financial literacy. Just a few miles away in the valley, Silvia Zaragoza Garcia was driven by similar hope and ambition when she launched the Zaragoza Childcare.
Like them, hundreds of other small businesses are the bone structure of our local economic ecosystem. Their dreams are not limited to their personal well-being and economic mobility. It always involves the communities they are part of as well as those visiting the region looking for high-quality and reliable services. In other words, it is about building and shaping the futures they want for themselves, their families and communities.
According to a report launched in October 2023 published by Beacon Economics, California Office of Small Business Advocate, and the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, California benefits from a yearly economic output of $192.8 billion generated by over 1.9 million minority-owned businesses. Almost half these businesses are Hispanic-owned.
They include Quintero Dominquez, Zaragoza Garcia and more than 200 Hispanic small business entrepreneurs Caravanserai Project supported and funded since early 2022 in the Inland Empire, especially the Coachella Valley.
Supporting Our Local Businesses: No money, no mission
We all know that “if you give a person a fish, you feed them for a day. If you teach them to fish, you feed them for a lifetime.” The same goes when working with entrepreneurs. Business training is important, but access to capital is what turbocharges their efforts.
Having access to funding (micro-grants to low-interest and flexible loans) enables these entrepreneurs to carry out the teachings and their own initiatives and minimize risk. This is even more important in historically underserved communities that traditionally had no or very limited access to business support, both education and capital.
“The support and financial backing allowed me to fast-track projects I believed would take longer,” is Quintero Dominquez’s feedback, months into a program Caravanserai Project offered to local Hispanic entrepreneurs that provided business education and up to $7,500 for business expenses.
It’s not merely about equity. It’s a long-term economic strategy. Diverse economies like the Coachella Valley are resilient not only because they allow its members to contribute. These entrepreneurs are open to taking risks, as many have done all their lives, and are supported by a tightly knit and supportive social ecosystem.
When we connect with one entrepreneur or business, we discover a whole family behind them and even more entrepreneurs. The Trujillo Sisters are the best examples. The three sisters, owners of Tru Self Care Boutique (Palm Springs) and True Awakening Studio (Coachella and Indio), are not just supported by their extended family. Their children, nieces and nephews are actively involved in the business. Angelica Trujillo explained this dynamic: “If you are considering starting a business, it means you can achieve it. There is a lot of guidance and support, so no excuses. Perseverance and family support are key!”
These small business entrepreneurs’ view of “return on investment” goes beyond the traditional way of thinking about economic impact, like creating jobs and paying taxes. They are here to stay because they are fueled by more than just revenue.
Gloria Rose, the founder of Bella Piel Skin Care, a Rancho Mirage-based business dedicated to clinical and aesthetic personal care for senior residents (65+), explains it best:
“For me, being an entrepreneur means being able to serve my community with the skills I have. Being an entrepreneur has provided a better life for my community, family and myself. Caravanserai Project has been a crucial partner in accomplishing all this, providing tools focused on sustainable long-term goals tailored to my business.”
We invite you to come to the desert and have the great experience of connecting with people, business people, like Emma, Silvia and Gloria.
Carolina Rosas-Saavedra is director of business innovation and curriculum at Caravanserai Project. Bradley Chargualaf is the former director of programs at Caravanserai Project. They can be reached at carolina@caravanseraiproject.org and bradley@caravanseraiproject.org.
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