On June 24th, LATINA Style returned to the city of Seattle, Washington on its 12th annual tour of the LATINA Style Business Series! Many women are starting their own businesses; in fact, women-owned businesses have doubled the national average for all their business types between 1997 and 2008, according to Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, 2005 Report on Women and Entrepreneurship. According to the Center for Women’s Business Research, Key Facts about Women-Owned Businesses, as of 2008, women owned approximately 10.1 million companies, or 40 percent of all privately owned firms. The research also states, that only one in five companies with $1 million in annual revenue-a standard measure of success—are women owned businesses. Despite the fact that women have made significant inroads, there remains ample opportunity for women to produce and grow businesses. The LATINA Style Business Series offers a venue for women to gather and engage in the different workshops and networking opportunities. Each workshop provides strategies and tools in which attendees can successfully compete in today’s business environment. “Latina entrepreneurs are the fastest growing small business sector in our economy,� stated Phyllis Gutierrez Kenney, Washington State Representative – 46th Legislative District. “The LATINA Style Business Series recently held in Seattle provided an excellent gateway for local Latinas to learn valuable insight on how they can leverage their influence for long-term growth and soar them to new heights as we build a new economy.� The Business Series was honored in having Representative Gutierrez Kenney welcome the attendees. As a Latina leader, Representative Gutierrez Kenney chairs the House Committee on Community, Economic Development, and Trade and is a member of the General Government Appropriations and Ways and Means Committees. In addition, education has always been a top priority for Representative Gutierrez Kenney. During her legislative career, she has sponsored legislation to create scholarships to expand access to college for low-income and minority students.

The LATINA Style team is also appreciative to Dr. Sandra E. Madrid, Senior Advisor to the Dean of the University of Washington School, and Chair of the event. Public service is a passion to Dr. Madrid. She has chaired six boards, three at the national level and several commissions. Dr. Madrid has received numerous awards both at the local and national levels including in 2010 the President’s Award of the Latina/o Bar Association and Woman of Distinction Girls Scouts of Western Washington Award. Mistress of ceremonies, Roberta Romero, KING 5 News reporter in Seattle, welcomed the audience to the LATINA Entrepreneur Award Luncheon. Ms. Romero came to Seattle from KOB-TV in Albuquerque, NM. Romero’s work in broadcasting earned her the First Place-Spot News Award from the Albuquerque Press Club in both 1989 and 1990. She also won a 1989 First Place-Spot News Award from the New Mexico Associated Press. The “Entrepreneur of the Year� award for the city of Seattle, Ana Miriam Castro was selected based on her lifetime achievements and her visibility as a true role model for many women. Castro and her sister have been co-owners of the Salvadorean Bakery for 14 years. They started their business as a partnership making it into a family-owned business.

The Salvadorean Bakery has been the place to host visits for the Salvadorean community. They have also made significant donations of their products to organizations such as SeaMar Senior Center, CASA Latina, and White Center Food Bank. Ms. Castro has also been a presenter during the legislative session in Olympia on topics related to health care for small business owners. According to Castro, her secret in being a successful business owner is having faith in her business and working on what she knows and loves doing. The one-day conference included expert panels on the following topics: The Essentials of a Successful Business, Accessing to Capital in Today’s Economy, Technology Solutions to Increase Business Productivity, Making Networking Events Pay, Lessons Learned-Latina Entrepreneur’s Survival Guide, and Where the Jobs Are. “It was our pleasure to be part of such a wonderful opportunity,� said Erica Macias, Program Assistant, Heritage University College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) and volunteer for the day. “I enjoyed seeing my C.A.M.P. students interacting with such successful, driven, Latina women. The students felt welcomed and many expressed their experience as unforgettable and extremely beneficial.� In addition, the Look Successful…Be Successful Fashion Show sponsored by Macy’s Inc. and conducted by Teresa Jones, Senior Account Executive of Univision, was included. The attendees received a first look into today’s hottest fashion for the workplace by learning the Do’s and Don’ts of business attire and how to transform from a business outfit into evening wear. Lancôme provided insightful tips on how to enhance the natural Latina beauty, and provided samples of their latest products.

Special Thanks to Sponsors:

Title Sponsor: Macy’s, Inc. National Sponsors: State Farm Insurance, United State Postal Services Official Hospitality Sponsor: Hyatt Hotels & Resorts

Special thanks to partners:

Partners include: Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP), National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP), Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA), Teleflora, NSHMBA, Small Business Administration (SBA), Opening Latino Doors, the Association of Washington State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Washington Business & Economic Development Center, The Internal Revenue Service, ALPFA, Professional Women of Color Network, and US Bank.

Special thanks to media partners:

Tú Decides Media, Bustos Media Seattle, El Mundo Newspaper, La GranDE 99.3 FM, Homero 1210 AM and PR Newswire.