State a Magnet for Small Businesses
The nation’s top minority- and women-owned small businesses are feeling very much at home in the Golden State.
Those are the findings of a just-released study by Entrepreneur magazine and Dun & Bradstreet, which shows that four of the top 10 minority-owned small businesses and two of the top 10 women-owned small firms are based in California--more than any other state. The study ranked U.S. businesses with less than 100 employees and an active minority or female owner by 1996 revenue.
“The only surprise is that there weren’t more California firms on the list,” said Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Economic Development Corp. of Los Angeles. “This is a wide-open market with so many opportunities.”
That’s what Seung Soo Lim found when he came to the United States as a graduate student in 1982. With little more than $3,000 in savings and an interest in photography, Lim started a photographic supplies business in 1985. His Glendale-based Photo Max Film Supplies Co. had $6.1 million in sales, making it No. 9 on Entrepreneur’s top 10 list of minority-owned small businesses.
“It’s not a miracle; I don’t have a special secret,” Lim said. “I just work hard six days a week and take care of the customer. That’s all.”
Why is California a mecca for these fast-growing small firms?
Part of it is demographics, observers say. Minority- and women-owned businesses are growing at a faster pace than the economy at large, so it’s only natural that many of them would be located in California, the nation’s largest state and a magnet for immigrants.
With a strong ethnic community as their base and job opportunities in corporate America often limited, many of those immigrants have ,opted to start their own businesses. Ditto for women bumping up against the glass ceiling, even in progressive California, which now has more women- and minority-owned businesses than any other state.
Plus, that same restive, inventive spirit that historically has made California an incubator for start-ups applies to entrepreneurs of all stripes, not just white men, said Rieva Lesonsky, editorial director of Entrepreneur.
“The risk-taking mentality is pervasive here,” Lesonsky said. “California is still where people come to make things happen.”
Judi Girard Stefflre, owner of Rail Delivery Services Inc., a La Mirada-based trucking and warehousing firm, agrees.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s a traditionally male or traditionally female world,” said Stefflre, whose company ranked No. 8 on the list of top women-owned businesses. “An entrepreneur is someone who goes out and proves they can do it.”
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Small Firms, Big Revenues
Women and minorities have found golden opportunity in California. The state has more top-ranked women- and minority-owned small businesses than any other state, according to a just-released report compiled by Entrepreneur magazine and Dun & Bradstreet.
Top 10 Women-Owned Small Businesses
Company: Mortgage Store
Location: Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
Type of business: Residential mortgage brokerage
1996 sales, in millions: $25.0
*
Company: Future Enterprises
Location: Washington, D.C.
Type of business: Computer software training, computer peripherals
1996 sales, in millions: $11.5
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Company: Stroud Group
Location: Columbia, Md.
Type of business: Contract purchasing for hospitality industry
1996 sales, in millions: $10.8
*
Company: LRJ Staffing Services
Location: Austin, Texas
Type of business: Staffing agency
1996 sales, in millions: $9.8
*
Company: Power Line Constructors
Location: Clinton, N.Y.
Type of business: Outdoor electrical contractor
1996 sales, in millions: $8.3
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Company: Techtrans International
Location: Houston
Type of business: Translation services, language training
1996 sales, in millions: $8.2
*
Company: Pyramid Precision Machine
Location: San Diego
Type of business: Precision machine shop
1996 sales, in millions: $8.1
*
Company: Rail Delivery Services
Location: CLa Mirada, Calif.
Type of business: Trucking, warehousing
1996 sales, in millions: $7.2
*
Company: Harbor Construction
Location: Savannah, Ga.
Type of business: General contractor
1996 sales, in millions: $7.1
*
Company: Professional Technical Development
Location: Lansing, Mich.
Type of business: Computer training, programming, support services
1996 sales, in millions: $6.7
Top 10 Minority-Owned Small Businesses
Company: Diaz Tirado Travel Bureau
Location: Bronx, N.Y.
Type of business: Travel agency
1996 sales, in millions: $28.8
*
Company: Steve’s Equipment Service
Location: Chicago
Type of business: Construction equipment sales and leasing
1996 sales, in millions: $16.3
*
Company: Gordon H. Chong & Partners
Location: San Francisco
Type of business: Architecture, interiors, planning
1996 sales, in millions: $10.3
*
Company: Indusa Technical
Location: Wheaton, Ill.
Type of business: Software consulting and contracting services
1996 sales, in millions: $10.1
*
Company: Beyond Innovations
Location: Miami
Type of business: High-tech products, consumer electronics
1996 sales, in millions: $7.9
*
Company: Sierra Circuits
Location: Sunnyvale, Calif.
Type of business: PC board manufacturer
1996 sales, in millions: $7.2
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Company: Malco Steel
Location: Kansas City, Mo.
Type of business: General construction, specializing in steel erection and placement
1996 sales, in millions: $6.8
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Company: Bosma Machine & Tool
Location: Tipp City, Ohio
Type of business: Contract manufacturing
1996 sales, in millions: $6.5
*
Company: Photo Max Film Supplies
Location: Glendale, Calif.
Type of business: Photographic supplies
1996 sales, in millions: $6.1
*
Company: La Tortilla Factory
Location: Santa Rosa, Calif.
Type of business: Tortillas, wraps, chips and salsa
1996 sales, in millions: $5.6
Sources: Dun & Bradstreet, Entrepreneur magazine
