Florida Hispanic Business Articles

Wealth disparities for middle-income Hispanics and blacks have worsened over the past three decades relative to white families, largely because of a lower likelihood of owning homes and retirement accounts, according to the Urban Institute.

New research from the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit points to an extraordinary wealth inequality between the races. Whites on average had six times the net worth of blacks and Hispanics in 2010, or $6 for every $1 (an average of $632,000 vs. $103,000). Comparing the median that year, whites actually had eight times as much wealth.

Wealth or net worth is defined as a person's total assets -- such as bank and retirement accounts, and home value -- minus debt -- which includes mortgages, student loans and credit card balances.

The income gap, by comparison, is much smaller.

In 2010, the average income for whites was twice that of blacks and Hispanics ($89,000 vs. $46,000), meaning that for every $2 whites earned, blacks and Hispanics earned $1.

"What we see looking at wealth disparities is that African-Americans and Latinos are not on the same wealth-building trajectory as white families," said Caroline Ratcliffe, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute and co-author of the report. "They are less likely to own homes and retirement accounts, so they miss out on these traditionally powerful wealth-building tools."

The report found the racial gap grows sharply with age. Early in wealth-building years (when adults are 32 to 40), white families have on average 3.5 to 4 times that of families of color -- $184,000. But by the peak years (ages 59 to 67) that had skyrocketed up to $1.1 million -- seven times more than blacks and nearly five times more than Hispanics.

The Urban Institute's report, "Less than Equal: Racial Disparities in Wealth Accumulation," was funded by the Ford Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation and the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The researchers reached their conclusions using data from the 1983 to 2010 editions of the Federal Reserve Board's Survey of Consumer Finances.

Jim Carr, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress in New York, said the report reinforces several recent studies from other organizations, such as the Pew Research Center, showing the racial wealth gap continues to grow wider.

He sees the housing market as a key factor.

"The disproportionate loss of homeownership among people of color is the largest contributor to the startling increase in wealth disparity," Mr. Carr said. "Severely depressed home prices are another contributor. To the extent home prices recover, families that have managed to hold on to their homes will also begin to recover their lost wealth."

But, he said, the racial wealth gap overall may grow further since so many families of color lost their homes.

"Proposals to rebuild the housing finance system going forward must better serve people of color," Mr. Carr said. "In particular, our rebuilt housing system must support the leveraging of current historic low mortgage rates and significantly depressed home prices to enable people of color to become homeowners."

He said most proposals now being considered do not address either promoting affordable homeownership or the need to serve borrowers of color.

"In fact, most proposals to restructure or replace Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac acknowledge the inadequacy of those recommendations to promote affordable homeownership and suggest that goal should be solely the role of [the Federal Housing Administration]."

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NEW YORK -- Baby boomers preparing for retirement are driving a surge in small business sales, as they find more and more buyers confident enough in the improving economy to expand their own businesses through acquisitions.

'Issue spotting' gives business owners affordable access to attorneys. Five years ago, when Leigh Elliott was getting ready to launch a small business, she looked for an attorney to review her plans.

Mark Shaw remembers the first time he had to fight to protect his intellectual property. Shaw, president and co-founder of Jacksonville-based UltraTech International Inc., had a patent on an industrial funnel for loading liquid into 55-gallon drums and then another company copied the design.

A bipartisan team from the Florida congressional delegation is banding together to form a "ports caucus" to push the interests of the state's seaports in the nation's capital.

It takes more than desire and drive to succeed in business. In today’s challenging economic environment, small business owners also need a working knowledge of financial and personnel management, record keeping, tax laws and legal structures; communication skills; and marketing savvy. Before launching your small business, review the dba Florida section beginning on page 18 where you’ll find answers to many basic business startup questions.

Walmart has 28 million Facebook fans. |  "It's the biggest fan page in the United States," Kerry Lakin, a senior account manager for Facebook, told an audience of national retail executives and others in Tucson Friday at the University of Arizona's Global Retailing Conference.

"That's more fans than Facebook has," Lakin said.

Building relationships with customers through social-media platforms was a hot topic Friday at the retailing conference at Loews Ventana Canyon, where fashion designer Tory Burch also spoke.

The event is put on annually by the UA's Terry J. Lundgren Center for Retailing, which is named for Macy's Inc.'s CEO, president and chairman, who is a UA alum.

Here are some of the highlights of Friday's presentations:

Walmart

Wanda Young, vice president of media and digital marketing for Walmart Stores, showed slides of mothers with their children, taken directly from Walmart's fan page on Facebook. "When we think about connecting with customers, we think of these moments. We are in the lives of our customers," she said.

Young stressed the importance of changing the focus from merchandising, sales and numbers to people.

Word of mouth and engagement works better than any other form of advertising, Young said: "It creates a system of trust."

That's what Facebook does for the chain. "Every person in the U.S. is connected to at least one fan of Walmart on Facebook," Young said.

Walmart constantly updates its Facebook feed, and created pages for each Walmart across the nation, so customers could see what was going on at their local stores. For Tucson, that means posts about the University of Arizona during March Madness, for instance.

Walmart's marketing team asks questions to engage its customers on Facebook, and uses the answers to change the way it does business.

For example, two years ago, Walmart customers said on Facebook that they wanted layaway. So Walmart brought layaway back to its stores.

"Retail has always been social," said Lakin, the Facebook senior account manager who was a co-presenter with Young at the conference. But consumer behavior has fundamentally changed. People are connected almost 24 hours a day.

Lakin said researchers found 80 percent of smartphone users reach for their phones within 15 minutes of waking up and most people have their phones with them 22 hours a day.

"When you are in the news feed, you are in the palm of a customer's hand," Lakin said.

Mobile and real-time marketing are becoming essential tools, keeping consumers updated on changes as they happen and answering questions as they appear in their news feed.

"Winning retailers will be the ones who are best at it," Lakin said.

Tory Burch LLC

Tory Burch is known for her success in the fashion industry and the foundation she created to help women entrepreneurs.

Burch, a designer, company founder and CEO, spoke about patience in growing a global brand. She compared it to playing tennis. "Focus on the game, wait for your shot and be patient," she said.

Her company waits for the right opportunity to expand. "Risk is a big part," she said. "But thoughtful and deliberate patience is the path to growth."

Among Burch's first influences in fashion were her parents. She said her father had impeccable style, and her mother was always chic and understated.

"Fashion is part of my DNA," Burch said.

Burch's first store opened in 2004, and hers has since become a global company. There are now 83 free-standing stores around the world, and Tory Burch products are available in more than 1,000 retail stores.

The company continues to grow, and plans to open 20 to 25 more stores globally this year.

As with other businesses, online is a key component and source of significant revenue for Tory Burch LLC.

Burch said her largest store is toryburch.com, which gives access to the brand where no retail stores are available.

"Social media is crucial," Burch said. "It gives us a window as to what's working and what's not."

For example, Burch said she posted an Instagram photo of herself wearing a dress she had designed. There was so much positive feedback on the Instagram photo that the company reissued the dress, and it sold out almost instantly.

Burch credits her company's success to asking the tough questions, not rushing into anything, believing in what she's doing and balancing work and family life.

Young women attending the retailing conference said they look to Burch as a role model.

"Tory is such an inspiration," UA retail and consumer sciences student Amanda Sassone said. "I'm drawn to her because of her leadership skills."

Innovative thinking is another draw for Callie Rose Bailey, a UA student. "The things she has to say are fresh," she said. "Especially not fearing to say no. Saying yes can get us into trouble."

Advice to Students

Burch offered the following advice to the UA students who came to hear her speak:

-- Even if you do not start in the perfect job right away, it will help shape you. It will enrich your experience.

-- Negativity is noise. Believe in what you are doing.

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Nearly three decades after founding ChannelNet, tech entrepreneur Paula Tompkins still finds that she is frequently the only woman in the room. The room is friendlier now than it first was when she was the only woman working in General Electric's marketing and sales department.

Yet the tech executive still typically finds herself in the minority. Studies show that while 50 percent of small businesses are female owned, the percent of female-founded technology companies remains in the single digits.

Privately held ChannelNet, based in Dearborn, Mich., provides Web-based multichannel marketing solutions for the home improvement, automotive, retail and financial services industries.

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Tompkins holds two technology patents and is celebrating 28 years of tech entrepreneurship and her eighth recertification by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC). Her advice to women today is first and foremost: Be yourself.

"Panty hose and pants go on the same way," she said in a release. "Business is uncomfortable and women shouldn't let themselves be intimidated. But they do need to carefully speak their mind. Whether you are a man or woman, customers typically don't respond well if you are too direct."

Her second recommendation is to create an advisory board. "It's important to surround yourself with executive-level talent that you can trust. They should have real-world experience in a number of key areas such as finance, operations, and small business."

Tompkins is taking her advice to the bank. She has survived several harsh economic downturns, and in 2013 ChannelNet is experiencing a 25 percent growth rate.

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"Owning a small business is a different ballgame than working in a big corporation," she said. "You have to make sacrifices and you can't have it all. You need to make decisions quickly and understand you won't necessarily be popular."

While some decisions may not be popular, small-business owners typically are happier. According to a TD Bank Small Business survey, 69 percent of small-business owners describe themselves as very happy. After 28 years of business, Tompkins whole-heartedly agrees.

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It's the ultimate act of faith. In one's self. In the community. In the economy. In America. And, most of all, in one's idea to sell a product or provide a service in an already-crowded and cut-throat market that collectively we call capitalism.