Lafayette, tissue. – When Jesus Correa entered the Lafayette big trade offices in 2023 to officially interview the position of “Latin Business Liaison”, it was a full circle moment.
In one of the largest conference rooms in the offices in 337 Columbia St., dozens of photos are taken in size on the walls of the conference room, illustrating people working to keep Lafayette manufacturing businesses moving.
But a photo in particular stuck Correa. It was a photo of a woman working in a mounting line in Wabash.
“I worked night shifts in that line. I knew that young lady,” Correa said. “She worked the mornings, so she would come in order as I was getting out of work at 7am and we would change places.”
Correa’s role as Latin business liaison for the large Lafayette trade was new to the organization, created for the purpose of building a stronger support system for new Latin and existing businesses.
While talking to business owners, Correa said he learned what it prevents businesses owned by Latino are facing municipal. But there was an important factor that he found that was leading to their success in Lafayette.
This factor was, good, lafayette.
Bridging a gap to help Latino business owners thrive
When Correa joined Greater Lafayette Commerce nearly two years ago, only five business members of the organization were owned by Latin.
Immediately after taking on his new role, Correa said he began to hit the sidewalk, working to connect with as many business owners as possible. Correa would then document their conversations in an Excel Spreadsheet, and doing so, he found a common issue.
Although business owners were finding success with clients in the Spanish -speaking community, many of those Latin business owners felt isolated.
One of Correa’s solutions, he said, was to begin receiving events specifically for Latino business owners to unite them.
“In the first we even had in the country’s café, we had about 30 business owners there, and (Chairman) Toni Roswarski came and said a few words,” Correa said. “Someone then told me that they would never have seen this lot of Latin business owners in one place.”
Listening to that Correa motivated to continue finding ways to continue joining those business owners while welcoming young people on stage.
Another idea was to create an annual Latin business exhibition.
Waiting for the first exhibition in May last year, Correa said just over 50 sellers were recorded. As this year’s 7th event approaches, hosted at Fairgrounds County Tippecanoe from 2 to 6 afternoon and open to the public, Correa said the list of sellers has grown well in the 1960s.
Through the Latin business exhibition, Correa said the event controls the boxes of some of the repeated obstacles he heard from Latin business owners when going door to door: exposure, networking and growth of their audience.
Today, 55 Latino -owned businesses are members of the large Lafayette trade through Correa’s work to engage with business owners.
“Many of these business owners felt like they had quoted the Latin or Hispanic market,” Correa said. “They know that Lafayette’s Hispanic community will go to their businesses, but many were not sure how to expand their business in other communities.”
But for Rosa Gaeta, the owner of Bakery Mamá Inesis, finding that support from all different communities is what has kept her and her oven, going for 25 years.
A part of success for everyone in Lafayette
At the age of 15, Gaeta moved from the small town of Salazare, located in Zacatecas, Mexico, for a dishwasher in the original Morris Bryant Smorgasbord restaurant in 1983.
Gaeta and her nine brothers and sisters all found opportunities in Lafayette, she said, and continued to become successful business owners, too.
Bakery Mexican Mamá Ines, called for Gaeta’s mother, first opened in 1440 Sagamore Parkway N. in 1999, offering only 15 freshly baked items at a time. Opening the doors in the oven was a little dangerous, Gaeta said, but she found immediate success.
“At that time, the population (Lafayette) was not as big as now, but it didn’t matter,” Gaeta said. “Usually small businesses have to wait a year or two to find success, but for us it was from day one. There was no waiting.”
Gaeta said seeing success here in Lafayette made him explore the opportunity to open a second place in Frankfort. But she discovered that it was not quite the same.
Although Frankfort had an equally large Latino community, Gaeta said she found what set the two cities was their facilities. Larger hospitals, Purdue University, big shops for buying all were things that people attracted to Lafayette every day, Gaeta said, revealing that her customers from Frankfort often frequented her Lafayette store while already running mistakes in the city.
“Frankfort has great businesses and great people, but Lafayette was just bigger,” Gaeta said.
Her rapid growth found Gaeta in need to expand her Lafayette store, making her transfer to the existing location of the oven flag at 518 Sagamore Parkway. Before Gaeta bought the building, she had been sitting empty for years, creating the need for Gaeta to collapse the building in the studs in order to renovate.
The character of the store is something that Gaeta boasts, she said, also visible to drivers along Sagamore Parkway. Walking through the doors, if the smell of fresh baked goods is not enough to make you smile, Gaeta said he hopes the living décor will.
The beautiful, vibrant décor is what many Hispanic and Latino businesses are known, said Pedro Sanchez, co -owner of the Mexican restaurant El Charro in Crawfordsville.
While he and his wife, Mayra, prepare to open a second place El Charro in Lafayette, taking over the location of the former -o’charley in 2413 Sagamore Parkway S., they have taken to decorate the dinner as commonly seen in the native city of Sanchez, Guadalajara, located in Jalisco.
The vibrant, vibrant greenery of Faux Lines the walls, sprinkled with color pops from flowers, a trend Sanchez said he has increasingly seen in restaurants around the United States.
Sanchez said they signed rent for the free building in August, initially hoping for a February opening. But while construction barriers tend to go, Sanchez said they are now looking for the end of April or early May for a grand opening.
Known to Tacos and their seafood at their original Crawfordsville location, Sanchez said he was amazed to find after posting on a Facebook group of Trypecanoe district for their close arrival in Lafayette that many people in Lafayette were often making a trip to his restaurant approximately 25 miles.
Growing up in Lafayette, Sanchez said, was the next logical step for them.
“Crawfordsville is a small town,” Sanchez said. “So if we can find success here, we can succeed in Lafayette too.”
What makes the biggest ‘big lafayette’
In all her years as a business owner in Lafayette, Gaeta said she could only confess once when a customer was less than nice. But even at that moment, Gaeta said she couldn’t worry with them.
In fact, you will be firmly crushed to find Gaeta there is anything bad to say to anyone.
Gaeta just loves people.
“When I came from Mexico, this was the first place I came and just fell in love,” Gaeta said. “I love people. Lafayette people have been so great to me. Sometimes people will talk about people” means “but no one has ever been bad for me here. I love them. I love them all.”
Hearing that the common love for the largest Lafayette area among the business owners is one of the things Correa said he loves for his work. People of big lafayette, Correa said, is a common topic among what those business owners often tell them they love the most.
“I think it’s the willingness of the community and being open to try new things,” Correa said. “Looking at a business like Mamá Ines that has been here for over 25 years will show how everyone is able to here. Bringing visibility to many of these newer businesses, too, we are ruining the borders and making them all feel welcome.”
In the United States, Hispanic and Latino workers are 33% more likely to start a business, Correa said. One of the reasons for that statistical Correa said he found to talk to business owners was that starting their business was more often easier than to find a job.
While there are feelings of riots within Latin communities around the United States given the current political titles, Correa said he hopes the great Lafayette community may continue to appear for Latino community events like Expo Business Latino.
“There is so much influence that the Latin community has in our community, whether they are entrepreneurs or members of the general labor force,” Correa said. “Lafayette has always shown support for the Latin community, and it is so important that they continue to do so.”
Jillian Ellison is a reporter for The Journal & Courier. It can be reached by email at jellison@gannett.com.