The National Latina Business Woman Association was founded in May of 2003 in Los Angeles, California with fifteen women that realized there was a need and they also had the vision to start an organization that catered to the business woman and professional woman by offering programs of substance to help guide them. Furthermore, the many emails from Latinas across the country inquiring about a chapter in their area told me that we needed NLBWA nationwide.

A committee within the NLBWA-LA chapter established and developed the criteria for the “Emerging Latina Program” which is a 6-8 week boot camp for women offering educational materials in marketing, law, accounting, IT, etc. They also have in place a workshop on how to write a business plan and have given $1,000 business scholarships for the best plan written per session. Each chapter designs their own sessions with Latinas as speakers. It was also decided early on to have a “Latina Financial Program” geared to both the personal and business side of finances. The chapters also have monthly breakfasts, luncheons , dinners or mixers with guest speakers. Moreover, and most importantly I felt the need to highlight Latinas n business and professionals once a year at all chapters throughout the country with a Gala awards event.

The National Federation of Independent Business is the leading small business association representing small and independent businesses. A nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded in 1943, NFIB represents the consensus views of its members in Washington and all 50 state capitals.

NFIB’s mission is to promote and protect the right of our members to own, operate and grow their businesses. NFIB also gives its members a power in the marketplace. By pooling the purchasing power of its members, the National Federation of Independent Business gives members access to many business products and services at discounted costs. NFIB also provides timely information designed to help small businesses succeed.

Founded in 1975, the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) is the unified voice of America’s more than 10 million women-owned businesses representing the fastest growing segment of the economy.

NAWBO is the only dues-based organization representing the interests of all women entrepreneurs across all industries; and boasts over 7000 members and 80 chapters across the country.  With far-reaching clout and impact, NAWBO is a one-stop resource to propelling women business owners into greater economic, social and political spheres of power worldwide.

The NAHP is a nonprofit, non-partisan trade advocacy organization representing the leading Spanish language publications serving 41 markets in 39 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, with a combined circulation of over 23 million.

NAHP was founded in 1982 to promote Spanish language publications, the most effective medium to reach the fast growing Hispanic community. Membership is open to Spanish language and Hispanic owned newspapers, magazines and related media as well as businesses that offer products and services to this market throughout the United States.

The Association of Free Community Papers was formed in 1951 to provide a forum for free paper publishers across the country to come together, share best practices, exchange ideas and build a stronger free paper industry.

AFCP is governed by a Board of Directors that is elected by its membership and appointed by affiliated state and regional free paper associations. Each state and regional association can appoint one or two board members depending on the number of their members who are also members of AFCP. AFCP members elect officers (President, three Vice Presidents, two At-Large members and the Secretary/Treasurer). Two board members are declared in the by-laws (Past President and the Executive Director, who serves as a non-voting member).

Established in 1976 as a private non-profit organization, the LBA is the country’s largest Latino business entity by virtue of total active membership and overall outreach to Latino business owners. This year, LBA celebrates 30 years of commitment and economic impact by creating business growth, providing advocacy and business education. In 1998, the LBA established a non-profit 501©(3) Institute (LBAI), generating millions of dollars in procurement and business loans since its inception.

California Hispanic Publishers Group is a company of Hispanic owned newspapers and magazines in the state of California. The publishers of our group have been active members, founders and or organizers of various state and national newspaper organizations, such as the National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP). The National Federation of Hispanic Owned Newspapers (NFHON) and the California Hispanic Publishers Association (CHPA) and of all the projections and objectives within these organizations, none have satisfied the needs of our publications. For that reason we have come together to form and represent ourselves as publishers, for publishers and by publishers for purpose of obtaining business for our publications.

In 1986 a small group of visionary free-ads paper publishers founded a trade association, FAPIA (Free Ads Papers International Association), dedicated to the sharing of information and creative ideas to benefit the classified media publishers and their companies. This visionary group decided to extend their ground-breaking business model to the international sphere, and developed an advanced electronic system to offer international advertising services to their local readers, in the beginning, entirely free of charge.

In April of 2003, the association changed its name to CMA – International Classified Media Association, which celebrated its 20th anniversary at the General Meeting in Munich in November 2006. ICMA continues as a democratic, international non profit-making association of high quality publications and websites carrying classified advertising which is dedicated to promoting excellence, co-operation and networking, market leadership, and innovation and information-exchange at every level amongst its growing membership.

IFPA is an organization rich in history and tradition of helping Independent Publishers compete in a fast changing world.