Page 10 - BusinessWest October 17, 2022

Editorial
A Unique Model — with Promise
BusinessWest
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1441 Main Street Springfield, MA 01103 (413) 781-8600 Fax (413) 781-3930
The Latino Economic Development Council (LEDC) opened to considerable fanfare last month. And with good reason.
It wasn’t just the new digs in the old Massachusetts Lottery facil- ity on Fort Street that has people excited. It’s the broad and laud- able mission, as well as the unique model, that is turning heads, while also providing promise for changing the local business land- scape — in all kinds of ways (See story, page 4).
The mission — the unofficial mission, anyway — as stated by several of the speakers in attendance at the grand opening, is to transform employees into employers, consumers of products into producers of products, people who work for others into people who work for themselves.
And the model for doing that is indeed quite unique. The agen- cy, which will award microgrants and provides space for meetings and co-working, has, at its core, a team of more two coaches that will provide a wide range of counseling and training that holds the promise of helping people grow their businesses and take them to the next level.
These coaches offer expertise in subjects ranging from finance to human resources; marketing to mental wellness; personal finance to accounting. It is this expertise that can help fledgling businesses create opportunities and avoid some of the problems that turn business ventures into casualties.
As we said, the model is unique. Many of the agencies within the region’s large and growing entrepreneurship ecosystem, such as Valley Venture Mentors and EforAll, provide mentoring and educa- tion in specific subjects. But there isn’t a deep bench of people who are in business and can pass on what they know to small-business owners who can benefit from their knowledge and experience.
One of the coaches, Giulberto Amador, president of the Mass 2 Miami Consultant Group and professional-development coach for
the LEDC, perfectly summed up the work of the LEDC and why he became a coach when he told BusinessWest, “I want to be able to give back when it comes to development of business and entrepre- neurship, teaching those basics, and helping people fine-tune their plans and the steps they need to take to become viable businesses in the community.”
Giving back is a critical component of the entrepreneurship eco- system, and it’s one of the principles that has enabled this region
to make great strides when it comes to encouraging entrepreneur- ship, getting new businesses off the ground, and, as Amador said, enabling them to remain viable.
While helping individual businesses is the stated goal of the LEDC, its broader ambition, as many speakers stated at the grand opening, is to change the landscape, both figuratively and also quite literally, when it comes to new businesses on Main Street and many other streets in cities and towns across the region, especially new Latino businesses.
After all, this is the fastest-growing segment of the region’s busi- ness community, and it possesses enormous growth potential for the years and decades to come, said Andrew Melendez, director
of Operations for the agency, noting that what many in that com- munity need is a “leg up,” which can come in many different forms, from capital to that expertise provided by the coaches.
Speaking for just about everyone in the room that night, and everyone involved with the LEDC, Amador told BusinessWest, “if there’s a McDonald’s in the North End of Springfield, I want to see a Latino owner of that McDonald’s. I don’t want to hear people say, ‘let’s go to McDonald’s’ — I want to hear them say, ‘I want to own a McDonald’s.’”
This ambitious agency and its unique model of doing business holds great promise for making those sentiments become reality. v
Christine Longhi [email protected]
Opinion ••••• MARKETING &
Take Action on Energy Efficiency
By Susan Olshuff
Feeling the chill in the air? Checking out the golden autumn leaves? Putting the lawn furniture away for
the winter?
As the days get shorter, we might find
ourselves thinking about the coming cold months, dreading the chilly bathrooms, worrying about the increasing heating bills, and concerned about the impact on our planet from all the energy we’re using.
Are you ready for what’s coming? Is your home ready?
We know we should really do something to prepare for the coming heating season, but then again, there’s the snowblower
that needs to be taken into the shop to be repaired, and the kiddie pool that needs to find its way to the back of the basement or garage, and so much more. We also know that those beautiful golden leaves will soon morph into cold snow.
You may not realize that every time you’ve paid a utility bill over the years,
you have been contributing to an energy- efficiency fund that is designated to pay for Mass Save energy-efficiency services that are yours for the taking at no charge. This includes a no-cost energy assessment along with recommendations for how to make changes that will save you energy and money.
Also at no cost, you’ll receive air sealing around those leaky spots that let cold air in, as well as programmable thermostats, water-saving devices, and energy-efficient power strips. You could also receive 75% to 100% off approved insulation. And there are more opportunities, too.
The mayors of both Springfield and West Springfield have declared October
to be Energy Efficiency Month. By focus- ing now on ‘doing the right thing,’ we can reduce our costs this winter and, at the same time, help our cities work toward their climate goals. You can sign up for your no-cost audit at masssave.com/egs.
Energy efficiency is the cheapest, quick- est way to meet our energy needs, cut our bills, and reduce harmful pollution. It’s also an economic engine, amassing a U.S. workforce of nearly 2.4 million at the start of this year in manufacturing, installation, construction, and other fields — most of which can’t be outsourced overseas. Energy Efficiency Day is a collaborative effort of more than 1,000 regional and national organizations.
The the colder it gets, the more people will request this assistance, and the wait time for your home energy assessment will lengthen. So don’t wait — act now. Your wallet will thank you, as will future genera- tions. v
Susan Olshuff is a town liaison and researcher for ener-G-save, a program of the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation LLC.
10 OCTOBER 17, 2022
OPINION
BusinessWest