On the day that President-elect Donald Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo had their first phone call – and first disagreement about what was actually said about immigration and the border – a more genial conversation was taking place in a meeting hall in Passaic.
A group of approximately 20 business and political leaders from Veracruz, Mexico, met with more than a dozen business leaders from New Jersey last Wednesday in an effort to understand how businesses in the central Mexican state that borders the Gulf can create economic partnerships with New Jersey.
The location of the meeting, El Castillo Catering Hall on Passaic Street in Passaic, was appropriate, as the street and surrounding area is home to Hispanic-owned companies that do more than $200 million annually in revenue, including Gromex, Abarrotes del Sur, Montiel Products and La Providencia.
Of course, the election of Trump – and his promises to deport all undocumented workers and put a 25% tariff on all products from Mexico – has everyone wondering whether it will be business as usual moving forward.
Teresa Venezuela Rubio, the founder and CEO of Global Trade Inc. in Austin, Texas, said the question is on the minds of all business leaders in Mexico. The hope, she said, is that Trump’s campaign and post-election bluster is more about satisfying his base rather than being the basis of policy.
Still, Valenzuela said, there is worry.
“There’s a healthy concern,” she said.
Venezuela, who has lived in both Mexico and the U.S., said that concern about the relationship came across throughout the 90-minute roundtable discussion.
“There is not as much fear as a healthy concern,” she said “But there’s an opportunity to do things better. This meeting was to identify ways of creating a better position for their products in the United States.”
Veracruz is known for a number of products, including leather goods and fruits and vegetables. Veracruz also is the second-largest producer of coffee in the country.
Luis de la Hoz, the chairman of the Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and a regional director of community lending at Valley Bank, said the meeting was intended to show the business leaders from Veracruz how their products could fit in New Jersey.
“This is not about getting business right away,” he said. “This is about setting up dialogue to make sure that they know you are out there if they need to find alternative or additional sources of supply.”
Opening a dialogue is key, de la Hoz said.
The event aimed to show the group from Veracruz that the reality of the business ecosystem in New Jersey may not necessarily match the rhetoric they have heard about the U.S. market on social media.
That only can come through conversation and on-the-spot observations, de la Hoz said.
“It was important for them to see that that the U.S. market, especially the Northeast, is the best alternative that they have in Latin America and Mexico,” he said. “It also was important from them to be able to filter out the information that they get through social media – and to see that what happened with the election should be seen more for opportunities than as a threat.
“They came trying to promote their products and services. We were able to provide them a better context of what is going on here.”
Jaime Delgado, the deputy mayor of Passaic, told the group that the city is eager to help however it can.
Another trip organizer, Christian Ochoa Zarate, the director of the Mexican Center for Local Development and Coordinator of the Latin Dream Program, said the potential of the area was evident.
Ochoa Zarate said he views the area between Miami and New York City as a canal of commerce for Mexican companies.
“We consider any community in the United States important because there are migrants here,” he said through a translator. “We’re trying to identify ways to connect the services to the people.”
Better said in any language was this: The group was trying to find a way to get past the rhetoric and get down to business, Ochoa Zarate said.
“I feel the relationship between Mexico and the United States goes beyond ideologies or a particular president,” he said. “We have to concentrate on finding solutions.”
