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Trade show is one-stop shopping

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The 15th annual Hispanic Consumer Trade Show is a win-win.

“It gives our members and other vendors the opportunity to access the huge Hispanic population, and it gives our Hispanic residents of Kern County the opportunity to see what products and services are available to them,” said Lou Gomez, the president and CEO of the Kern County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (KCHCC).

This year’s event will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. onSunday, Aug. 17, at the Kern County Fairgrounds. Admission is free.

Vendors will show a wide variety of products and services — a bottled water company, family attorney, wireless phone companies, mortgage lenders, a flower shop, the Ranch Market, home remodeling contractors and more — available right here in Kern County, where 42.8 percent of the population is Hispanic.

And since the population in Bakersfield and its outlying areas continues to grow, the purchasing power available within the Hispanic community is expected to grow as well. Currently, the annual purchasing power for Hispanics is estimated at $2.6 billion annually, which amounts to more than 30 percent of all local spending, according to the KCHCC.

Organizers are expecting 60 to 70 exhibitors and 3,500 attendees or more. The event will also feature very family-friendly entertainment, including mariachi music and folklorico dancers.

Every year, the event seems to improve, giving the chamber more than enough reasons to continue offering it to the public and to business representatives, Gomez said.

“It’s kind of like one-stop shopping,” he said. “Everyone can do business with each other, members on put their businesses out there and the people are there to see that.”

One of Gomez’s main duties for the chamber is to encourage local businesses to know their purchasers, to know what they like, what makes them comfortable doing business with them.

“I advocate to business owners that, if they haven’t already, they need to change their marketing strategies to appeal to the Hispanic market,” Gomez said. “Every Hispanic consumer wants many of the same products and services that are out there, it’s a very lucrative market — but they want to talk to someone who knows their language, knows their needs.”

Another point Gomez often makes is that Hispanic residents, in general, are of a younger age and have larger families, which can translate to big business.

“They’re in the acquisition mode, they’re buying more furniture, homes, cars, keeping up with the latest fashions and trends,” Gomez said.

That’s why the Hispanic Consumer Trade Show works.

“It’s bringing people in and enhancing the business opportunities for our members,” Gomez said.

Everyone wins.

Hispanic Consumer Trade Show

• 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Sunday, Aug. 17
• Free admission
• Details, 633-5495