While this blog has previously highlighted American businesses finding success overseas, there is as much potential success when looked at from the opposite perspective – immigrants who moved to the United States are founding thriving companies.
Immigrants and Small Businesses in the US
According to a report by the Fiscal Policy Institute, immigrants own 900,000 small businesses in the U.S. Specifically, that is 18 percent of the 4.9 million businesses with fewer than 100 people working for them.
Drawing data from the Survey of Business Owners and the American Community Survey, which looked at those who own an incorporated business, the report showed that the percentage of immigrant-owned small businesses is higher than the immigrant share of the population – 13 percent (The Translation Company provides immigration translation services). The labor force stands at 16 percent.
Business translation does not always need to be limited to English being translated into other languages. Companies that are looking to expand into new markets, regardless of where those markets are located, can benefit from partnering with document translation services.
For example, the study further showed that between 1990 and 2010, small business owners grew by 1.8 million to 4.9 million, with immigrants making up up 30 percent of that growth.
How Small Companies Start
Greg Fairchild, associate professor of business administration at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, explained to CNBC that individuals might start a company on their own out of necessity.
“Even if they have college degree from a home country, people don’t know those schools in the U.S.,” Fairchild said. “They have credentials and knowledge and drive but they’re not recognized by typical employers. They begin by hiring themselves.”
Partnering with a translation agency with certified Spanish translators can help growing companies keep pace with their competition. Furthermore, those translation experts can work with expanding organizations, easing the transition into a new country.