Just a minute with Nancy Hernandez

Title: President Company: ABRAZO Multicultural Marketing & Communication
Company address: 316 N. Milwaukee St., Suite 32, Milwaukee
Company Web site:
www.abrazomarketing.com
Industry: Marketing, advertising, public relations
Number of employees: 5
Education: Bachelor of arts degree in business & marketing, Lakeland College; master’s degree in business administration, international business, Marquette University
Family: Husband, Andrew Narrai
What’s new at your company?:
"We added a new product – providing culturally appealing and effective design supervision for construction of services targeting ethnic communities."
What was the smartest thing your company did in the past year?:
"Continue to give back to the community. Although we are small, we still can afford to do some amount of pro bono work for organizations that help make a difference. Because we have such strong ties to our markets, this makes us a more effective organization for our clients."
Do you plan to hire any additional staff or make any significant capital investments in your company in the next year?:
"ABRAZO is currently planning on opening offices in another state by the end of this year. This will allow us to continue to grow our in-depth market knowledge and better service our client base."
What will be your company’s main challenges in the next year?:
"Balancing an effective growth strategy."
What is the most significant obstacle facing Latino business owners in Milwaukee?:
"Access to key decision makers within potential client’s organizations. Many Hispanic business owners have terrific, competitive and effective products and services but have difficulty growing their firm because they lack the connections or don’t have the time to develop those connections to propel their businesses to the next level."
Do you have a business mantra?:
"Anything is possible."
From a business standpoint, who do you look up to?:
"On a local scale, there are a couple of Hispanic business owners that have grown effective, contributing, multiple companies and have helped community and fellow business owners. Brian Ganos with Sonag Construction, David Aragon with The Site Group are two examples of local business owners that I admire."
What was the best advice you ever received?:
"A friend and fellow entrepreneur once told me to ensure that I had the right people to take the organization to the next level. I take this piece of advice to heart and use it as the main criteria for all new hires."
What do you do like to do in your free time?
"What free time? No, really, running and working out. A good bottle of wine with good friends and good conversation."
April 16, 2004, Small Business Times, Milwaukee, WI