There are at least 3,000 new Hispanic businesses in the state since last year, and the $709 billion sector is attracting more interest from large banks, according to new reports.
Bank of America released its inaugural Hispanic small business spotlight recently.
The survey reveals many of the issues that the Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey is well aware of and has been discussing for years.
The newest report from Geoscape, a Miami-based business intelligence firm that has focused on the multicultural landscape of the country since 2001, has been cataloguing the growth of Hispanic firms in the country and analyzing their financial impact.
Last year, Geoscape estimated that roughly 116,000 Hispanic businesses in New Jersey contributed to the $668 billion economic impact nationwide in 2016.
This year, that number has jumped to more than $709 billion, with the strongest growth, more than 40 percent, in the Southeast region of the country.
New Jersey’s region, the Mid-Atlantic, grew by about 24 percent, and the state specifically saw growth to more than 119,000 businesses.
But the growth of businesses is not the most interesting part, according to Hispanic chamber Vice Chairman Luis De La Hoz.
“What caught my attention was the size of the business and the industries of Hispanic businesses have been changing,” he said.
Businesses have started doing well, though only five in the country have surpassed $1 billion — New Jersey’s Goya is one of those.
In addition, another significant change is the relationships the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce has with federal government partners who can affect regulations on minority-owned business and contracting.
“That will open big doors for us,” De La Hoz said.
Javier Palomarez, who heads the USHCC, said in a statement attached to the report: “The findings presented here serve as an accurate source of information for policy makers, corporate executives, the media and researchers who seek a complete and insightful understanding of the Hispanic market and its thriving entrepreneurial segment. At the USHCC, while we are proud to advocate on behalf of business owners who happen to be of Hispanic descent, we never forget that we are first and foremost American businesses. Every tax bill we pay, every job we create, every product we manufacture and every service we provide goes to benefit our nation’s economy.”
