US Hispanic Marketing

Elena Salas, executive director of the Hispanic Chamber and one of five founders of the Hispanic Business Alliance, says the organization became stagnant over the last few years.

The alliance was started in 1997 to empower the growing Hispanic business community in Memphis. Salas left Memphis in 2003 when she was transferred by FedEx Corp. to Miami, but returned last year. While she was gone, the organization’s membership dwindled. She says the goal now is to “reorganize and start over” as the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

The group estimates a Hispanic community of more than 150,000 people who are looking for services and businesses owned by people who speak their language and share their culture. The chamber currently has 95 members. Salas says that number could grow by up to 40% in the next two-three years.

The majority of Hispanic Chamber members are in the service areas of restaurants and retail stores, with others representing the construction and health care industries. Contrary to popular belief, Salas says, the chamber currently doesn’t have any landscaping companies as members.

“We’d welcome some,” she says.

Partnering with the Hispanic Chamber will allow MMBC to make inroads into the Hispanic community, says Luke Yancy, president and CEO of the MMBC.

“The intent is for them to grow their membership and for us to help them grow the capabilities and revenues of Hispanic businesses,” Yancy says. “We’d end up providing the programs they don’t have.”

Salas says the Hispanic Chamber has had difficulty recruiting some of the larger Hispanic-owned businesses, which prefer not to be labeled as such.

“You want to be the best at what you are regardless of race, sex or nationality, and if you’re doing millions of dollars in revenue, it isn’t like you’re using your status to get perks,” she says. “But from our standpoint as a chamber, it is important to know who is who because it helps business owners to see that role model and what the Hispanic community is bringing to the table.”

Anna Martin, CEO of real estate firms Trinity Investors and Memphis Medical Redevelopment Group, who recently joined the Hispanic Chamber, says it is long overdue for Hispanic businesses to have access to the services the chamber will provide. Martin, who is originally from California, says in the Bay Area, which is 80% Hispanic, communication isn’t as big an issue as it is in Memphis.

“I don’t find enough people here that can effectively communicate with Hispanic people locally so they can live and be educated the right way,” Martin says. “I’ve been impressed with what I’ve seen so far.”

Salas says another immediate goal of the chamber is to grow its four-person volunteer staff into a paid staff to improve services and training programs. The chamber could also be a resource for larger companies looking to do business in the Hispanic community. To that end, Salas says it is important to make sure member companies will be prepared when those companies come calling.

“It isn’t about having a chip on our shoulders, but for so long, we were not included in so many areas,” she says. “We need to educate people that not everybody is Mexican or illegal. We’re citizens and we’re contributing to the community. It starts with business, but goes hand in hand with education.”
Memphis Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Executive director: Elena Salas
Address: 158 Madison, Suite 101
Phone: (901) 528-1294
Web site: www.memphishispanicchamber.org