Are+Immigrant-Owned+Businesses+Surviving+Better+than+Most%3F

%3Cp%3EThe+values+that+immigrants+learned+about+being+thrifty%2C+avoiding+excessive+debt+and+relying+on+family+support+from+their+native+countries+are+helping+them+better+ride+out+the+recession+than+most+entrepreneurs%2C+according+to+%3Ca+href%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.timesdispatch.com%2Frtd%2Fbusiness%2Flocal%2Farticle%2FIMMI15_20090314-193619%2F231794%2F%22%3Ean+article%3C%2Fa%3E+last+week+by+the+Richmond+Times-Dispatch+in+Virginia.+%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cimg+src%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fs.wsj.net%2Fmedia%2FSmall_Business_acb_20080909140928.jpg%22+alt%3D%22Small_business_owner%22align%3Dleft%2F%3EThat+pay-as-you-go+philosophy+was+born+and+ingrained+from+cultures+where+credit+is+not+as+readily+available+as+in+the+U.S.%2C+says+Gregory+Fairchild%2C+an+associate+professor+of+business+administration+at+the+University+of+Virginia%26rsquo%3Bs+Darden+School+of+Business.+Immigrants+rely+on+personal+savings+more%3B+he+notes+that+in+some+Asian+cultures%2C+the+savings+rate+is+as+high+as+15%25+to+20%25+versus+the+low+single-digit+savings+rate+in+the+U.S.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%26ldquo%3BYou+are+used+to+bootstrapping%2C%26rdquo%3B+says+Nico+De+Leon+in+the+article.+He+is+the+owner+of+NXL+Inc.%2C+an+engineering+and+surveying+firm+in+Richmond%2C+Va.%2C+who+moved+to+the+U.S.+from+the+Dominican+Republic+in+the+%26rsquo%3B70s+and+started+his+business+in+1991.+%26ldquo%3BYou+are+used+to+the+idea+that+you+are+going+to+have+lean+years%2C+possibly+quite+a+few.%26rdquo%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EImmigrant+business+owners+total+about+1.5+million+in+the+U.S.%2C+representing+12.5%25+of+all+business+owners%2C+according+to+the+Small+Business+Administration.+And+they+make+huge+contributions+to+the+U.S.+economy.+A+%3Ca+href%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fmoutray.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F11%2F11%2Fimmigrant-business-owners%2F%22%3Ereport+released+in+November%3C%2Fa%3E+by+the+Small+Business+Administration+Office+of+Advocacy+showed+that+%26ldquo%3Bimmigrants+are+nearly+30+times+more+likely+to+start+a+business+than+nonimmigrants%2C+and+they+represent+16.7%25+of+all+new+business+owners.%26rdquo%3B+In+some+states%2C+more+than+30%25+of+all+business+start-ups+are+from+immigrants.+%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%26ldquo%3BPersonally%2C+we+do+not+believe+in+taking+on+debt%2C%26rdquo%3B+says+Veda+Shekhar%2C+who+owns+and+operates+Eagle+Travels%2C+a+travel+agency+specializing+in+trips+to+India+and+the+Far+East%2C+to+the+Richmond+Times-Dispatch.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ETinh+Phan%2C+chairman+of+the+Virginia+Asian+Chamber+of+Commerce%2C+says+immigrant+groups+have+traditionally+relied+on+family+networks+for+help+in+starting+businesses.+He+adds+that+Asian-American+owned+businesses+in+particular+are+more+reluctant+to+take+on+debt%2C+which+can+prove+to+be+an+advantage+in+tough+times.+%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%26ldquo%3BFrom+back+home%2C+the+lesson+I+learned+is+you+have+go+to+do+things+within+your+means%2C%26rdquo%3B+told+Tony+Sappal%2C+owner+of+the+India+K%26rsquo%3BRaja+restaurant+in+Henrico+County+in+Virginia%2C+to+the+Richmond+Times-Dispatch.+%26ldquo%3BEverybody+does+need+help+from+some+kind+of+credit.+Back+home%2C+people+would+take+private+borrowings+from+family+and+friends+and+then+they+pay+it+back.%26rdquo%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3EReaders%2C+what+do+you+think%3F+Can+risk-averse+business+attitudes+be+the+key+to+surviving+a+recession%3F%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A ... http://link.gs/iDi0