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September 02, 2025

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Programs help fuel the future of Hispanic-owned businesses

By Tonya McMurray

3 Key Takeaways

•  Latina women-owned entrepreneurs entrepreneurs contribute more than $1.3 trillion to the U.S. gross domestic product.
•  USHCC offers a trio of programs that help Latino businesses at every stage of growth.
•  These programs exemplify a shift in how Hispanic entrepreneurship is recognized, supported and scaled.

From boardrooms to buyer meetings, Hispanic entrepreneurs are redefining America’s business landscape, and the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) is helping to accelerate that change. Through a trio of initiatives — the Latina Growth Accelerator, Latina Enterprise Leader Program and Avanzando Suppliers with Blue Wave program — the USHCC is bridging critical gaps in access to capital, executive leadership development and corporate procurement for businesses at every stage of growth.

A new generation of high-impact Latina business leaders

Latina women-owned entrepreneurs contribute more than $1.3 trillion to the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), accounting for more than 14% of all women-owned businesses. Despite this economic power, Latina business leaders often face disproportionate barriers in accessing financing, mentorship and corporate contracts. The newly launched Latina Growth Accelerator targets those barriers with education, tools and strategic connections.

The accelerator is a collaborative effort between the USHCC Educational Fund and the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), with support from The Kroger Co. Foundation. The six-week virtual executive education program is designed for Latina-owned businesses with annual revenues exceeding $10 million.

Evelyn Barahona, senior vice president of the USHCC Educational Fund, said the inspiration for the accelerator came from a simple yet compelling question posed by strategic partners: What if you helped Latina-owned companies, already generating millions, go even further?

“We’ve supported small businesses for years,” she said. “But this is different. This is about helping high-revenue Latina businesses break through ceilings they didn’t even know they had.”

The inaugural cohort of 23 Latina entrepreneurs across North America concluded in early 2025. The participants represented industries such as construction, business services, consumer products, and specialty manufacturing.

The accelerator program aims to fuel sustainable mid-market growth, unlock access to capital and build a new generation of high-impact Latina business leaders. It was built around five pillars of strategic growth:

• Capital Readiness: How to prepare for and access mid-market capital, including equity funding, loans and opportunities for mergers and acquisitions.

• Strategic Planning: Tools and frameworks to help leaders evaluate their business models and build a framework for sustainable expansion.

• Operational Excellence: Sessions led by top business school professors focused on optimizing efficiency, staffing and infrastructure.

• Human Capital and Innovation: Strategies for building strong teams and fostering a culture of scalable innovation.

• Peer and Corporate Networking: Direct access to corporate partners, capital providers and fellow Latina entrepreneurs.

Participants also benefited from personalized small-group coaching, as well as a curated set of tools, dashboards, resources and courses provided by WBENC, USHCC and program partners.

One of the most profound outcomes of the program was the shift in mindset it sparked among participants, Barahona said.

“For many of these entrepreneurs, no one had ever asked: Do you want to become a $50 million company? A $100 million company? They hadn’t paused to ask: What does scaling really mean for me?” she said. “This program gave them space to answer that and a chance to step back from the day-to-day grind and think bigger.”

USHCC — which is holding its annual conference Sept. 21-23 in Atlanta, Georgia — and WBENC are already planning a second cohort, but Barahona noted that the impact of the accelerator extends beyond the participants. Highlighting mid-market Latina entrepreneurs and equipping them with the tools to succeed acts as a beacon for emerging founders and serves as a model for future programs across various industries.

“We’re helping change the narrative,” she said. “This is just the beginning. When you lift up Latina-owned businesses, you lift up entire communities. You shift what leadership looks like in this country.”

“The next stage of success”

Building on the momentum of the Latina Growth Accelerator, the Latina Enterprise Leader Program will bring together Latina enterprise CEOs generating more than $20 million in revenue for an immersive two-to three-day executive experience at a leading U.S. business school.

Supported by Wells Fargo & Co., the program will unite Latina entrepreneurs for sessions focused on succession planning, next-generation leadership, growth strategies, high-performance board development and digital transformation. USHCC is in the process of finalizing a partnership with a business school and aims to launch the program in the fall.

The initiative’s nomination-based recruitment process will identify 20 to 25 Latina enterprise leaders and executives ready for what Barahona calls “the next stage of success.” As Latinas increasingly involve daughters and successors in their companies, the initiative is as much about building intergenerational wealth as it is about shaping an inclusive economic future.

Helping certified suppliers move forward

As USHCC continues to elevate Latina business leaders through executive education and strategic partnerships, it’s also driving tangible impact at the procurement level by helping certified suppliers gain traction in competitive environments with the Avanzando Suppliers program.

The Avanzando (Spanish for “advancing” or “moving forward”) program targets certified suppliers that have been in business for at least three years and have either $3 million in revenue or strong growth potential.

Now in its fourth year, the initiative has supported more than 100 companies, connecting certified suppliers with major corporate buyers. In 2024, 58 businesses graduated, having held more than 110 buyer meetings at the USHCC’s signature events.

The program’s bilingual digital platform, developed in partnership with Blue Wave International SDP Corp., includes seven core modules that provide participants with tools to navigate global standards, prepare procurement documentation and establish strategic connections across industries.

“We realized there was a gap — not in effort, but in knowledge,” Barahona said. “Many certified businesses weren’t landing contracts because they lacked the tools and industry language to compete. Partnering with Blue Wave allowed us to merge our resources and create a curriculum that directly addresses those challenges.”

Beyond technical training, the program focuses on creating a community and connections, offering peer support, shared expertise and strategic introductions.

Barahona recalls one supplier in the program’s initial cohort who had struggled to gain traction. At the end of the program, another participating supplier offered an introduction to a major buyer, which resulted in a six-figure contract.

“The supplier says that would never have happened if they had not gone through the program,” she said. “Part of the program’s success is that the businesses become supportive of each other. They share knowledge and build lasting relationships.”

Toyota’s Green Builds Business funds this year’s cohort, which is the first to focus exclusively on sustainability-driven businesses.

“Toyota saw the alignment between their sustainability goals and our supplier development mission,” Barahona said. “They wanted to elevate businesses that prioritize sustainability — not just as a value, but as a competitive advantage.”

Together, these programs exemplify a shift in how Hispanic entrepreneurship is recognized, supported and scaled. By investing in executive education, supplier readiness and community-building, USHCC is helping to create a future where Hispanic business leaders influence industries, lead boardrooms and promote inclusive growth across generations.