Kansas City: A Hub for Hispanic Entrepreneurs
Kansas City, Missouri, has long been recognized as a nurturing ground for small businesses, particularly those owned by Hispanic entrepreneurs. Since its inception back in 1977, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City has served as a beacon of hope and resourceful guidance for countless business owners in the area. Remarkably, Kansas City was not only the birthplace of this vital chamber but also laid the groundwork for the first national Hispanic chamber in the United States.
A Vision for Equality
Back in the late 1970s, a group of 25 determined Hispanic businessmen recognized a pressing need. They wanted a platform that could advocate for their businesses and foster equal opportunities in a competitive landscape. Mike Barrera, the district director for the Kansas City Small Business Administration, shared insights from that time, saying, “I think that they wanted kind of a fair shot at some of the contracts that were going around.” It was a matter of creating an advocacy group that truly understood the unique challenges faced by Hispanic businesses, rather than any intentional exclusion.
Founding the Chamber
The passion and persistence of those early visionaries laid the groundwork for what we know today as the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City. Among those founders was Mike’s father, Richard Barrera. Mike recalls, “My father, him, and many other businessmen locally got the local Hispanic Chamber started.” With their hard work and dedication, the chamber was not just rising to meet local needs; it was setting the stage for something even bigger.
Just two years after the Kansas City chapter was established, the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce was birthed, thanks to the leadership of Kansas City’s own Hector Barreto Sr. The early days of the national chamber were rooted right here in Kansas City, with its first headquarters located on Southwest Boulevard.
A Growing Community
The impact of the local Hispanic Chamber has been profound. As Edward Reyes, president of Reyes Media, reminisces about his parents’ newspaper, Dos Mundos, which they launched in 1981, he shares that their office was located a stone’s throw away from the chamber’s early headquarters. “So this resonated with my mom and her goals with the newspaper,” Reyes mentions, reflecting on how closely intertwined their work was with that of the Chamber’s leaders. He even helped out as a teenager, absorbing all the insights he could.
Reyes eventually landed a job at the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce after college, and highlights the invaluable experiences he gained. “We were doing trade missions. We were looking at expanding opportunities through the I-35 corridor,” he explained. Those opportunities weren’t limited to just local businesses; they were looking nationally and internationally at all the potential that could be tapped into.
Continuing the Legacy
Today, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City continues to positively impact local businesses. “I know for hundreds of businesses here locally, the chamber has been a resource for them in starting up and getting the right foundation set,” Reyes states. From networking opportunities to industry-specific resources, the chamber has proven to be an essential ally for many nascent enterprises.
Whether you’re an aspiring business owner or a seasoned entrepreneur, the importance of community and support cannot be overstated—a lesson that Kansas City has embraced wholeheartedly through its rich history of advocacy and resilience for the Hispanic business community.
