This article was prepared in collaboration with Claudia Rivera Cotto
A million dollars written on a piece of paper before it ever became a reality. A young Venezuelan woman who arrived in North Carolina without speaking English and started working as a nanny and cleaning houses. And a Salvadoran man who, after 19 years as an employee, decided to start his own company.
These are stories of immigrants from different Latin American countries that helped explain the same reality during the first edition of “Latino Voices”: part of North Carolina’s economic growth is also being built in Spanish.
under the motto "The North Carolina success story also speaks Spanish" , Enlace Latino NC On Wednesday, September 9, it brought together entrepreneurs, experts, leaders, and community members to discuss the growth of Latino entrepreneurship and, above all, to learn the stories behind some of those businesses.
Manuel “Manolo” Betancur, from Colombia; Mishell Thielen, from Venezuela; and Carlos López del Cid, from El Salvador, shared how their experiences as immigrants and workers were part of the path that led them to develop companies that today generate jobs, income and opportunities for other people.
Stories of power, growth, and success
The meeting began with a conversation about the growth of Latin American entrepreneurship between Zurilma Anuel, a Venezuelan and representative of Carolina Small Business Development Fund, and Paola Jaramillo, co-founder and CEO of Enlace Latino NC.
Then, Betancur, Thielen, and López del Cid participated in a panel moderated by Claudia Rivera Cotto, journalist Enlace Latino NC , in which they discussed the obstacles, decisions, and opportunities that shaped their careers.
To Enlace Latino NC “Latino Voices” also represented the organization’s first experience with an event of this type: a space to take some of the conversations that are part of its coverage outside of digital platforms and meet directly with the community.
Jaramillo explained that the initiative is part of the search for new ways to complement journalistic work. Enlace Latino NC with spaces for listening, conversation and connection.
For 8 years, Enlace Latino NC It has told the stories and addressed the issues affecting the state's Latino and immigrant communities in Spanish. With "Latino Voices," the organization also sought to create an in-person space where some of those voices could connect directly with the community.
The numbers behind Latino businesses
Anuel presented data about the for Growth of Latino-owned businesses in the United States and North Carolina.
“More than 16% of businesses in the United States are owned by Latinos,” Anuel said.
In North Carolina there are approximately 90,000 Latino and Hispanic-owned businesses, according to data presented during the event.
The figures show the growth of a business community that has gained presence in the state economyBut behind those numbers are stories of people who started with limited resources, faced obstacles, and found different ways to grow their businesses.
An opportunity written on a piece of paper
For Betancur, a number written on a piece of paper became a goal.
“I saw an opportunity, I wrote it down on a piece of paper and decided to believe that one day it would become a reality. That piece of paper said: one million dollars,” Betancur said.
Today, Betancur owns Manolo's Bakeryin Charlotte. Around the bakery he has developed other businesses and initiatives, including Artisan Gelato, Higher Grounds by Manolo and Made in America by Immigrant Hands, a non-profit organization.
Their operations employ around 70 people, approximately 95% of whom are immigrants.
Betancur has also been an active voice in support of Charlotte's immigrant community, including during and after immigration operations of the Border Patrol in the region.
“Our only sin has been believing in the American dream. Every day we remind this country that they invented it, but we are the ones who keep it alive.”
Manuel “Manolo” Betancur
During the conversation, Betancur explained that his growth as an entrepreneur was also accompanied by a process of recognizing the value of his Latino identity in his business.
At first, he said, he tried to develop a concept similar to other existing establishments in the United States. Over time, he decided to reinvent it and incorporate more products and elements of Latin culture.
That didn't mean ceasing to attract consumers from diverse backgrounds. The change consisted of abandoning the attempt to replicate a concept originally designed for a different audience and placing their own identity at the heart of the business.
The transformation, he explained, allowed him to stop seeing Latino culture as something that had to adapt to an American model and instead make it a central part of his company.
From Venezuela to a cleaning company
When Mishell Thielen arrived in North Carolina from Venezuela in 2016, she was 19 years old. She didn't speak English or drive, and her first jobs were as a babysitter and cleaning houses.
Two years later he created his own cleaning company.
What started with a few clients has grown into a company that now serves over 200 clients per week and employs more than 40 people full-time.
Thielen also created Sunshine Cleaning Club, a program through which it has trained more than 1,500 people interested in opening their own cleaning businesses.
In June 2026, it launched Kleent, a brand of plant-based cleaning products and tools.
“Many entrepreneurs don’t realize at first that they can actually build a company,” Thielen said.
His career path shows a transition that goes beyond self-employment: from providing a service personally to developing a business structure capable of employing dozens of workers and, subsequently, passing on that experience to other people interested in starting a business.
From a rejected loan to a $7 million company
For López del Cid, the path to entrepreneurship began after almost two decades working for other companies.
López del Cid arrived in North Carolina from El Salvador in 1999. After approximately 19 years as an employee and more than two decades of experience in erosion control, he reached a turning point in his career: he needed money to start your own business.
He asked his employer for a $5,000 loan. As he recounted during the event, he knew the company had the resources to lend him the money, but his request was rejected.
For López del Cid, that rejection was a turning point. Instead of abandoning the idea, he decided to prepare himself to build his own company.
“One day I realized I had to prepare myself to build my own company. I couldn’t study, but I learned on the street and never stopped preparing myself,” said López del Cid.
In 2019 he founded Del Cid Erosion ControlIt started with a pickup truck and rented machinery.
Currently, his company has approximately 12 trucks, nearly 20 machines, and a network of subcontractors. The business generates around $7 million annually.
López del Cid also helps other Latino workers create and develop their own companies.
Stories that resonated with the audience
The experiences shared by the entrepreneurs also caught the attention of those who attended the event.
“The stories shared today were truly incredible. Congratulations. I learned so much,” she said. Maribel Madera, from Wake Technical Community College.
Madera also highlighted the effort involved for many entrepreneurs in opening a business in a country other than their country of origin.
To Beatriz Aguayo MorenoFrom Prospera Small Business Specialists, listening to the experiences of entrepreneurs allowed us to learn about the difficulties they faced in building their businesses.
“What I loved most about Latino Voices was hearing the different stories of the entrepreneurs and taking all their experiences as inspiration,” said Aguayo Moreno.
Aguayo Moreno also highlighted that he appreciated that the entrepreneurs spoke about the barriers they encountered along the way and shared their experiences in a close and personal manner.
From workers to employers
Although Betancur, Thielen, and López del Cid come from Colombia, Venezuela, and El Salvador, respectively, work in different industries, and came to entrepreneurship through different paths, their stories share several elements.
The three started as workers and later built businesses that today generate opportunities for other people.
Betancur turned a bakery into the starting point for other businesses and initiatives and employs dozens of people, mostly immigrants.
Thielen went from cleaning houses to running a company with over 40 employees and then began training other people to develop their own businesses.
López del Cid turned more than two decades of experience as a worker into a company that generates around $7 million annually and works with a network of subcontractors.
But the experiences shared during the meeting also showed that entrepreneurship was not an immediate process nor was it free of difficulties.
Starting with limited resources, learning how a different market works, accessing capital, developing networks of contacts, and transforming the knowledge acquired as workers into companies were all part of their journeys.
The first Latino Voices of Enlace Latino NC
To Enlace Latino NCThe first edition of “Latino Voices” also represented a step in the evolution of an organization who was born in 2018 as a digital media outlet in Spanish that has expanded over the years the ways in which it reaches and listens to the Latino and immigrant communities of North Carolina.
The event allowed us to bring part of that work into the physical space: gathering information, experiences, protagonists and community around a conversation that has an impact on the state.
It also allowed entrepreneurs, organizations working with small businesses, and community members to meet in one space and establish connections beyond the event.
For Jaramillo, that component is part of what Enlace Latino NC It seeks to develop initiatives such as “Latino Voices”.
“Our work begins with journalism and information that our community can use. But listening is also part of that work. Latino Voices allowed us to meet face-to-face with our community, learn about other experiences, and create connections around stories that are also transforming North Carolina,” he said.
The approximately 90,000 Latino and Hispanic-owned businesses in North Carolina mentioned during the meeting offer a glimpse into that transformation.
The stories of Betancur, Thielen, and López del Cid allow us to observe it from another perspective.
Behind some of these businesses are immigrants who were first workers, learned their industries from different positions, and later decided to turn that knowledge into their own companies.
In their cases, the process did not end when they managed to become owners either.
Their companies began to create jobs. Some developed new projects. Others began to train, hire, or help workers interested in creating their own companies.
This multiplier effect was one of the recurring themes in the stories shared during the first edition of “Latino Voices”: the growth of Latino entrepreneurship is not limited to business owners. It also extends to workers, families, subcontractors, new entrepreneurs, and communities.
And it allowed for concrete stories to be put behind the motto that gave rise to the meeting: the success of North Carolina also speaks Spanish.
Watch our Latino Voices event on YouTube, with English subtitles. Hear the stories and join the conversation!
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