LACCC Chair Message

Greetings from the 2011 LACCC Chair,

Julio Colmenares

Dear Members, Sponsors, Fellow Board of Directors and Staff,

I want to take this opportunity to thank each one of you for your support, loyalty and dedication to the Latin American Chamber of Commerce of Charlotte. As new Chair for the year 2011, I humbly take the responsibility of continuing leading this organization to fulfill its mission of creating a platform for the development of relationships, opportunities and empowerment for Latin American businesses.

The past few years have been very difficult not only for our Latino entrepreneurs, small businesses and workforce, but the entire business community. Many had closed their doors, some of us lucky enough to have been able to make payroll and/or have down sized their business to survive in this tough economy. The future looks bright, but we still have many challenging years ahead of us. The reason why, this year I want to focus on providing our members access and opportunities that will impact their bottom line, increase sales and develop long-term business relationships.

Our new and more robust platform of programs and services includes NETWORKING events with Lunches, Tapas, Botanas, Café y Pastel and Charlotte Chamber After Hours; ACCESS to opportunities with one-on-one meetings, Match Ups, Mentor Mentee Mixers, Expo's and Job Fairs; RETOOLING with Spanish and English Seminars on today's must-have information; LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT with Entrepreneur and Stepping Up Programs.

These programs are designed to serve our members and can only work if we stay together. I'm deeply appreciative of this opportunity and to make 2011 a year of much success within our organization and business community.

En la unión está la fuerza (in union there is strength). I look forward to our working together.

Respectfully,

Julio Colmenares
CGR Creative