Editor’s note: Este artículo está traducido al español.
Lizbett Salazar’s introduction to UNR Extension’s Small Business Education Program came through a friend’s invitation to “Cafecito,” the organization’s monthly networking breakfast. She left that morning signed up for the program’s 10-week Business 101 class.
“It helped me out, because this time I went and opened this business, but now with all the tools that I needed,” said Salazar, who credited the class with opening her eyes to the wealth of resources available at the county and city level.
Beyond the curriculum itself, the class gave Salazar the opportunity to connect with fellow business owners — to understand how they think, absorb their ideas, and gather their feedback on everything from her website to her logo. It was a new approach for Salazar, CEO of Tiger Marketing Solutions, a B2B consulting and marketing company in Southern Nevada, who had already launched two business ventures before enrolling.
“A lot of us — we have ideas of a business, but then we just need to go and take action,” she said. “Go where the resources are. And it helps our community, because — especially in the Hispanic community — I feel that more businesses are open and (if) they get the help on how to succeed, it will help the whole economy, the environment.”
UNR Extension, which is part of the university’s College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources and has offices in each of Nevada’s counties, aims to help people across the state in various ways, said Chris Markl, who recently came on board to oversee the organization’s community and economic development offices.
The entity’s small-business programming in Clark County is concentrated in Paradise and North Las Vegas, and the 7-year-old Small Business Education Program delivers entrepreneurship classes to small-business owners like Salazar.
“How do we help them create a new income source or grow their income to really change their lives?” Markl said. “That’s the amazingness of the work here at UNR Extension, is that we’re working with just everyday people, who are trying to build income from themselves, change their lives, improve their lives, through entrepreneurship and small business. And that’s the most meaningful part of this work.”
Reyna Mendez, small-business education coordinator at UNR Extension, is based in North Las Vegas and curates programming to the Hispanic population through initiatives like the Cafecito, a small-business incubator and more.
Classes taught 100% in Spanish are unique to the area, Markl emphasized.
“We have a lot of women that are bilingual, that just prefer to engage in Spanish,” Mendez said. “It’s a huge success.”
Salazar, who is from Mexico, took the Business 101 course offered in Spanish. It was not only educational, she said, but hands-on. It was about making participants’ business ideas a reality, not just a theory, she continued.
“It was pretty much like taking us (by) the hand and walking us through the whole process,” said Salazar, whose business works with companies like Sprouts to distribute organic products.
Through education, UNR Extension’s program is giving its participants the tools for them to grow their businesses, Mendez said. She pointed to Salazar, who is now ready to leave her current job to run her business full-time.
Building a business is overwhelming, Markl said, and UNR Extension’s program aims to provide the skills and education to make it as feasible and reasonable as possible for aspiring entrepreneurs to have the best chance at gaining additional income for themselves and their families.
“That’s our mission here,” he said. “And that’s why the entire time is so passionate. Because you see people’s lives change.”
UNR Extension partners with banks, chambers of commerce and other local entities, Mendez said, to maximize their impact. Her main audience is over the age of 40, Mendez said, and many of them need help with digital marketing, social media and e-commerce.
“We try to bring them resources,” Mendez said. “We try to connect them with resources in the state that can help them grow. They can get a portion here with education — the education that we provide — but also, they need access to capital.”
Many people come to the program with an idea for a business, Mendez said, and the Extension helps them see the opportunities available in Nevada and to better execute their idea, and ultimately have better chances at success.
“We try to keep them informed about the economic necessities that we have here,” she said. “As you can see, I mean, Las Vegas is a very touristic place. And it comes with a lot of needs.”
A goal of UNR Extension’s in the new year is to expand its entrepreneurship support across the state, and particularly in rural areas.
“In many rural areas, it’s difficult to find a … decent- paying job, and entrepreneurship is the most natural avenue with people (who) have skills, talents, time,” Markl said. “And they can translate that into income through entrepreneurship.”
UNR Extension is trying to find ways to create virtual environments for its main programs based in Clark County, including the Business 101 course and small business incubator, so that it can scale across the state.
The program offers “as much virtual content as possible” and is committed to expanding even more, said Markl, who noted that only a small percentage of small businesses are reaching the many resources available to them.
“We talk a lot about, what would an extra $1,000 a month mean for an entrepreneur?” he said. “And that’s kind of the goal. And you can think about the economy and average incomes and adding an extra $1,000 to people’s monthly income is life-changing in many ways.”
