MJ: Right, which leads me to an interesting question, you’re an anomaly, why? King: We became the first Chamber of Commerce in California to host an SBDC program. We became the first Chamber of Commerce, and of course, the first ethnic Chamber of Commerce as the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce became the host and the manager of the program. They were a little reluctant to think that we could handle that because we are not a bureaucratic organization. Therefore, they came up with a compromise for us back in 2011, and that is to host and manage an SBDC Hispanic Satellite thinking that we could promote it to the community that we serve and that would be a natural extension. As a result, we were able to launch and manage the very first Hispanic SBDC Satellite in the Nation. Now, we don’t discriminate, so we do a lot more than the Latino community. In fact, when we first started out, we were particularly focused on communities of color, immigrant communities, mostly the marginalized business communities that have difficulty getting access to the mainstream resources like banking, loans, and investments those kinds of things; we thought that there was a genuine need for that. After doing that for two years, and exceeded expectations in all the metrics that they gave to us, job creation, job retention, new business starts, they gave us the right to host a second SBDC program which we are now doing, and that is the SBDC Silicon Valley. We are honored to have two of those programs, and they serve the whole community.
MJ: SBDC has its goals, but you have a reputation for having additional goals. What are those goals? King: Each SBDC has a list of metrics that we are supposed to hit. Let me give you a more specific example, the Silicon Valley SBDC our goal for this year is to serve, 420 clients, independent business people, either people in business which are the first choice or people on the edge of getting into a business. We are supposed to help at least thirtysix new businesses get created; this is only for Santa Clara County. SBA also measures in jobs; this is essentially a job creation program. Our goal for the Silicon Valley side, we are supposed to create a 132 new jobs, new positions. We are also supposed
to save 114 jobs that are at risk of getting lost. The differences are measured, and if we don’t make a difference when we are interacting with a business owner, then we are not doing our job. SBA measures on loans and equity investments; the goal is to generate six million dollars in loans and six million dollars in capital investment in those small businesses. For the Hispanic Satellite it’s the same metrics, so double that for Santa Clara County.
MJ: Do you believe that the small business is the backbone of America? King: Absolutely! Underneath the success of great companies here in Silicon Valley that have worldwide significance, people will look at those, but the small businesses that were here long before them and probably long after are the small businesses that provide the life of the community.
MJ: Is there an upswing of young entrepreneurs, emerging because of technology? King: Yes and no. The yes, is that the younger generation does not need an education on the value of technology the young people have grown up with it. Technology has allowed the world to connect regarding promoting small businesses, with the ability to sell products and services internationally on a level that has never happened before in the world. Young people don’t need to be in awe of it; they are already used to it, and it’s easy to get the word out using a local company like eBay. Young people have more technology options and more familiarity than generations passed in using technology.
MJ: What is your best advice to an aspiring entrepreneur? King: Probably, the challenge to stay connected to people that you trust. It’s one thing to work for yourself than by yourself. Therefore, you need to surround yourself with people that have skills that can help you grow your business. Running your own business is not nine to five activities, and you have to draw the line somewhere. Remember, that there is a whole community to support you and we want you to succeed.
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