DENVER, CO LATINA Style traveled to Denver, Colorado’s Mile-High City, for its March 18 Business Series. The number of Latina entrepreneurs in Denver is rapidly growing, and they turned out in great numbers to the event, held in the Adams Mark Hotel.

Toti Cadavid, Xcelente Marketing & Design

The day kicked off with a continental breakfast as attendees mingled and began their etworking con pan y café. Sponsor exhibits were also available for networking and to exchange information with attendees. The room was full of excitement as sponsors and Latinas came together with the ultimate vision of encouraging Latina entrepreneurship.
As Lillian Cosio of New York Life said later that day, "We are growing and we are a force." Indeed, a powerful force Latina women are; and with passion and dedication, they will continue to reach for the stars.

The women were welcomed by two very successful Latinas from Univisión: news anchor Nancy Leal and weather anchor Virginia Garcia. LATINA Style President Robert Bard delivered introductory remarks. "Living in a Latina world is an incredible experience, you can’t help to be inspired by the incredible accomplishments Latinas are achieving all over the country" he said.

The morning’s seminars focused on some of the major issues faced by business owners. The session, titled “Corporate Procurement,” featured Patricia Barela Rivera, district director of the U.S. Small Business Administration. Rivera informed the women of the SBA Matchmaking Program, designed to help small-business owners grow their businesses by obtaining more contracts from government and industry representatives.

The next session, “Access to Capital,” focused on educating women on obtaining financial support in their businesses in a panel moderated by Alice Perez, Hispanic market manager and VP with US Bank. Panelists included: Ceyl Prinster, executive director of the Colorado Enterprise Fund; Agnes Carroll, president of Cultura Business Communications; and Roxanne Sanchez, business development officer of the SBA Division of US Bank. All the panelists agreed with Carroll when she said, "Put it in writing—having a business plan is the first step to materializing your dream." According to the panel, a “marketable plan” is a huge step in selling your idea to a bank when requesting a business loan.

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