The Orange County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce has its work cut out for it.
The Santa Ana-based business group is seeking to more than double its membership from 468 now to 1,000 within the next two years.
Even though the U.S. Census puts the number of Hispanic-owned businesses in OC at 24,000, the chamber’s president, Manuel Ramirez, said he faces an uphill battle in raising awareness of the group’s existence and the services it provides.
“Many people don’t realize that we’re here,” said Ramirez, who also is chief executive of his own Irvine accounting firm, Ramirez International Inc.
With its current membership, the OC Hispanic Chamber already is one of the largest in the state, according to Ramirez. The chamber has more than doubled membership in the past three years, he said.
Founded in 1986 by a group of Hispanic businessmen, the group’s aim then was to create awareness of the Hispanic business community by fostering camaraderie among Hispanic businesspeople.
Ramirez said today one of the chamber’s key roles is to provide advocacy for small business owners who lack the wherewithal of larger corporations to lobby government officials.
“Small businesses, for example, get only half of their health plan payroll deductions tax-exempt, while larger companies get a full tax exemption,” Ramirez said.
To gain members, Ramirez said the chamber is looking to bolster services and make itself known through a series of events, from job fairs to hosting foreign dignitaries.
The chamber plans to offer a credit union, accounting and legal services through member-to-member discounts and college scholarships to children of members, Ramirez said.
The chamber helped set up the International Trade Center in Santa Ana earlier this year, which Mexican President Vicente Fox inaugurated.
“Vicente Fox realized the large Hispanic community in Santa Ana would be a tremendous trade gateway into the U.S. for Mexican companies,” Ramirez said.
The chamber’s membership includes Disneyland and the Brea-based Southern California division office of supermarket chain Albertson’s Inc.
“We have about 50 members of that stature,” Ramirez said. “The smallest companies in our chamber have as few as one employee.”
The chamber holds a job fair each year,this year’s fair takes place next month at the Disneyland Hotel.
The chamber also holds an exposition each year with finance forums that provide information for small businesses on how to obtain loans.
Next month, the chamber plans to co-host with the Orange County Office of Protocol a visit by the vice president of Panama and five ministers of that country’s government, Ramirez said. n
