Measuring Our Commitment to the Region

by Maria S. Salinas

As the pandemic took a hold of our economy, small businesses were hit the hardest. Many closed their doors permanently while others were forced to move quickly to reinvent and reimagine their business models. We saw the creativity of business owners in keeping their entrepreneurial dreams alive with new products and new ways of doing business, and at the Chamber we reinforced our support of small businesses through technical assistance, especially in contract procurement. Thanks to the Chamber’s OneLA, Inclusive Procurement program, many of L.A.’s small businesses were trained to secure a contract with major organizations.

For many business owners, OneLA was the silver lining of the pandemic. Eric Castro, an L.A. based contractor who earned a Purple Heart in Iraq, was one of those business owners. As the pandemic shut down the economy, Eric and others like him were able to take the courses offered by the Chamber’s OneLA program to learn how to secure a contract, allowing his business to not only survive the pandemic, but also to grow. By securing a contract with a public agency, he kept his team employed and created additional jobs. He was even featured in Fox 11 Los Angeles during Hispanic Heritage month, a compelling story which can be viewed here.

Small business owners start with a dream and we are committed to seeing those dreams realized. Entrepreneurship is one of the best forms of prosperity building and a contract with a major organization can create a path for economic mobility. The OneLA Inclusive Procurement program focuses on creating a pathway to contract opportunities. Through training, mentorship, and relationship-building with a committed group of public and private partners, we can create an opportunity for equitable wealth building for local, small, and diverse businesses by helping them win contracts.

In a region where over 90% of the businesses have fewer than 20 employees and where there is the greatest concentration of women and minority owned businesses in the nation, investing in technical assistance is a gamechanger. With a focus on equity and inclusion, OneLA provides pathways for equal access to contract opportunities across a variety industries, and we are proud to say that OneLA graduates from our first cohort have secured over $10 million in contracts over the past year. Read the L.A. Area Chamber’s OneLA Impact Report here.

The Chamber is looking to grow contract ready small businesses for the many international sporting events coming to Los Angeles. For more information on OneLA, click here.