Latino-Owned Businesses: Patterns of Growth and Exclusion

released in the second half of 2010, there has been a fl urry of articles published across the country noting the increase in Latino businesses since 2002. From Oregon to Arkansas to New Hampshire and Pennsylvania, across rural communities and urban areas, the nation saw dramatic increases in Latino-owned businesses between 2002 and 2007. This article provides an overview of Latino businesses and the issues they face as they struggle to succeed in today’s changing economy. The recently released data show that nationwide, Latino-owned businesses (non-farm) increased by 44 percent, compared to the 18 percent increase for all businesses. In raw numbers, Latino-owned businesses increased from 1.6 million in 2002, to 2.3 million in 2007, while all businesses increased from 23 million to 27.1 million. Latino businesses were 8.3 percent of all nonfarm businesses and generated $345 billion in sales/ receipts, up by 55.5 percent from 2002. They employed 1.9 million workers with a total payroll of $54.7 billion, an increase of 26 percent and 49 percent, respectively, since 2002. On average, however, Latino businesses made $153,000 a year, which is lower than the $179,000 average for minority-owned businesses, and comprises slightly less than one third of the $490,000 average made by White-owned businesses. These data demonstrate the considerable growth and impact of Latino-owned businesses. At the same time, however, Latinos still face signifi cant obstacles both in starting businesses and in operating them. Limited capital and credit access continued to diminish