are you a handsome fine whoa you’re
gonna love the next speaker then for now
you’re stuck with me and we’re gonna
have an unexpected conversation I’m
going to ask you to question things you
know are true see the world in a
different way and ultimately I’m going
to ask you to cheat let’s start off with
some unexpected things about me I’m
Latino give it a second he’ll come via
an economist and a recovering banker
basically I could never be on the show
Portlandia not happening I’m also the
father to a severely Anna feel of phobic
daughter say with me Anna
Fila phobic it means she’s deathly
afraid of mosquitos and I often say I
was born to live in Portland as I came
into this world literally moments after
the Portland Trail Blazers won their
first and only championship on June 5th
1977 my adult life has been spent in
banking finance and venture capital
helping people with loans advice and
sometimes tears who are brave enough to
hang their own shingle and take on the
little guy Portland’s a small business
town home to a non-profit brew pub a
professional snuggler and where it’s
true it’s true and where Berry’s
barbeque and baked beans are a flavor of
ice cream
in fact 83% of businesses in Portland
have less than 10 employees an emerging
small companies like wild Fang whose
fearless leader you’re going to hear
shortly that are less than five years
old account for more than 90% of jobs in
the United States small is who we are
now one of the most amazing stats I’ve
come across
comes to us from the US Census Bureau
who said in 2012 Portland was home to
more than 4,000 black businesses and
that these businesses had annual
revenues of more than 440 million
dollars this isn’t what you read about
in the Atlantic or what you see at local
area meetups I realize our growing
economic entrepreneurial ecosystem was
disconnected from this growing group of
black founders and in order to dismiss
the generally accepted truth of the
disappearing black business I figured
how could I be a bridge between the two
so in 2015 I created the event pitch
black
it puts black entrepreneurs front and
center while also connecting them to the
entrepreneurial ecosystem here in
Portland we’ve been covered by the
Portland Business Journal wired and
TechCrunch as a way to stimulate
innovation and get innovation going in
underserved communities this year we’re
going on the road we’re going to DC
Seattle Austin and other cities across
the country imagine that the country’s
whitest city leading the way and how to
support black folks
[Applause]
[Music]
sometimes small gives you the room to do
really big things now in all my years
doing finance I’m often asked Stephen
what’s the what’s the biggest deal
you’ve ever done and though I’ve done
mix use projects with tens of millions
of dollars in financing my answer is
always the same mr. Howard’s $20,000
loan see he’s a contractor and when we
met 12 years ago he was homeless living
in his van out of state trying to find a
way to get back to his native Portland
with his head held high he had an
opportunity to work on one floor of a
30-story building here in town and if
you could get that floor done he had the
opportunity to work on the rest of the
floors the only thing standing in his
way was the $20,000 he needed to
complete that first floor mr. Howard’s
beaming smile and passion led me to turn
over every rock call in every favor and
in the end over tears and hugs we were
able to sign the documents to allow him
to seize his opportunity mr. Howard’s no
longer homeless and his company does
millions of dollars in projects each
year small was my biggest deal ever now
I’ve given you a couple cool stats and
you may have heard some of those as well
as a heartwarming story or two
but what’s in it for you when it comes
to small now these cities have become
the identities of our these businesses
have become the identities of our cities
if you follow me on Instagram or Twitter
you’ll see I love to take me some
selfies at all of my favorite small
businesses around town but how weird
would it be to see a selfie like this
one
now this goes beyond getting likes or
followers these are the landmarks we use
to describe our neighborhoods these are
the places that we go to spend our most
precious moments in fact they are the
original social network now I’ve given
you a few cool stats you may have heard
those before as well as a heartwarming
story or two but what’s in it for you
when it comes to small
[Applause]
a recent study by Baylor University
looked at over 3,000 counties across the
country they use US census data along
with statistics from the Center for
Disease Control and they found that the
counties with the most small businesses
actually had a longer life expectancy
and lower rates of diabetes and obesity
I don’t think this is a surprise at all
we’re relational beings and living in
proximity to other people where we can
have authentic relationships means we
will live longer happier lives you may
think it’s banks that are the ones that
help these businesses after all
Portland’s home to one of the greatest
banks in the country Umpqua who thinks
so highly of small businesses that they
have a website just to put them in the
spotlight they also do their part when
it comes to lending in 2015 they did
twenty six million dollars in small
business loans alone in one year but I
bet you didn’t know this port lenders do
that same dollar amount every two days
on food entertainment and apparel alone
every two days your small contribution
is big now you spending your money it’s
really important but where you spend it
maybe the biggest thing of all let’s
take coffee when you buy your morning
mocha Starbucks roughly ten cents of
each dollar stays in town the rest goes
off to other parts of the country and
world but when you buy that same mocha
at a local coffee shop like deadstock
coffee almost fifty cents of each dollar
stays in town go into a marketing
consultant bookkeeper or architect now
you’re not a douche bag if you shop at
Starbucks
[Applause]
they’re a great company I just want you
to realize the power that your money has
and the impact you can have in your own
city just from walking in a different
door when you came in here today I bet
you thought it was banks that had the
power to support small businesses
turns out it’s you my kids and I were
watching the Discovery Channel last week
and on came the show with the 10
deadliest animals in the world it had
all the usual suspects that you fear the
most when you’re walking on a forest
trail including the grizzly bear who
after being described they gave the
disclaimer that it wouldn’t help to run
or climb a tree because they can do that
better than you
and one failed swipe of their claws can
tear a man in half as I got to number
one on the list the narrator said
responsible for more deaths each year
than animals 2 through 10 combined is
the mosquito the mosquito it turns out
my daughter’s not Ana Fila phobic after
all she actually understands how small
is so big now small is a last word you
wanted to hear today after all Ted’s
about great gigantic ideas that have the
ability to cure cancer and world hunger
or make you laugh and tell you wet your
pants from people with a bunch of
letters after their names I’m not that
speaker and you know what big is
overrated small is doable
people don’t make small goals they dream
big but the work the work is small I’ve
got some work for you today my buddy
Neil is a body builder he’s a great big
guy and every day he loves to post his
meals on Instagram and
normally they’re bland and nothing you’d
write to the Food Network about but
every so often he has a cheat day and
I’m talking two large pizzas with a
milkshake chaser cheat day I want to
challenge you to have a cheat day week
or month cheat on Amazon and buy the
bedazzled Snuggie from a locally owned
store cheat on Walmart and buy your
groceries from a local grocer who more
than likely knows the name of the person
that grew the carrots that you bought or
cheat on your Starbucks barista every
Thursday and discover a mind-blowing
mocha at a sneaker themed coffee shop
because when you invest small you invest
in the well-being of the community and
when you invest in the well-being of the
community you ultimately invest in your
own health and strengthening the fabric
of your city you have more power than
you know imagine how many more mr.
Howard’s we could help if we just cheat
more
your small contribution is big
you
[Applause]
gonna love the next speaker then for now
you’re stuck with me and we’re gonna
have an unexpected conversation I’m
going to ask you to question things you
know are true see the world in a
different way and ultimately I’m going
to ask you to cheat let’s start off with
some unexpected things about me I’m
Latino give it a second he’ll come via
an economist and a recovering banker
basically I could never be on the show
Portlandia not happening I’m also the
father to a severely Anna feel of phobic
daughter say with me Anna
Fila phobic it means she’s deathly
afraid of mosquitos and I often say I
was born to live in Portland as I came
into this world literally moments after
the Portland Trail Blazers won their
first and only championship on June 5th
1977 my adult life has been spent in
banking finance and venture capital
helping people with loans advice and
sometimes tears who are brave enough to
hang their own shingle and take on the
little guy Portland’s a small business
town home to a non-profit brew pub a
professional snuggler and where it’s
true it’s true and where Berry’s
barbeque and baked beans are a flavor of
ice cream
in fact 83% of businesses in Portland
have less than 10 employees an emerging
small companies like wild Fang whose
fearless leader you’re going to hear
shortly that are less than five years
old account for more than 90% of jobs in
the United States small is who we are
now one of the most amazing stats I’ve
come across
comes to us from the US Census Bureau
who said in 2012 Portland was home to
more than 4,000 black businesses and
that these businesses had annual
revenues of more than 440 million
dollars this isn’t what you read about
in the Atlantic or what you see at local
area meetups I realize our growing
economic entrepreneurial ecosystem was
disconnected from this growing group of
black founders and in order to dismiss
the generally accepted truth of the
disappearing black business I figured
how could I be a bridge between the two
so in 2015 I created the event pitch
black
it puts black entrepreneurs front and
center while also connecting them to the
entrepreneurial ecosystem here in
Portland we’ve been covered by the
Portland Business Journal wired and
TechCrunch as a way to stimulate
innovation and get innovation going in
underserved communities this year we’re
going on the road we’re going to DC
Seattle Austin and other cities across
the country imagine that the country’s
whitest city leading the way and how to
support black folks
[Applause]
[Music]
sometimes small gives you the room to do
really big things now in all my years
doing finance I’m often asked Stephen
what’s the what’s the biggest deal
you’ve ever done and though I’ve done
mix use projects with tens of millions
of dollars in financing my answer is
always the same mr. Howard’s $20,000
loan see he’s a contractor and when we
met 12 years ago he was homeless living
in his van out of state trying to find a
way to get back to his native Portland
with his head held high he had an
opportunity to work on one floor of a
30-story building here in town and if
you could get that floor done he had the
opportunity to work on the rest of the
floors the only thing standing in his
way was the $20,000 he needed to
complete that first floor mr. Howard’s
beaming smile and passion led me to turn
over every rock call in every favor and
in the end over tears and hugs we were
able to sign the documents to allow him
to seize his opportunity mr. Howard’s no
longer homeless and his company does
millions of dollars in projects each
year small was my biggest deal ever now
I’ve given you a couple cool stats and
you may have heard some of those as well
as a heartwarming story or two
but what’s in it for you when it comes
to small now these cities have become
the identities of our these businesses
have become the identities of our cities
if you follow me on Instagram or Twitter
you’ll see I love to take me some
selfies at all of my favorite small
businesses around town but how weird
would it be to see a selfie like this
one
now this goes beyond getting likes or
followers these are the landmarks we use
to describe our neighborhoods these are
the places that we go to spend our most
precious moments in fact they are the
original social network now I’ve given
you a few cool stats you may have heard
those before as well as a heartwarming
story or two but what’s in it for you
when it comes to small
[Applause]
a recent study by Baylor University
looked at over 3,000 counties across the
country they use US census data along
with statistics from the Center for
Disease Control and they found that the
counties with the most small businesses
actually had a longer life expectancy
and lower rates of diabetes and obesity
I don’t think this is a surprise at all
we’re relational beings and living in
proximity to other people where we can
have authentic relationships means we
will live longer happier lives you may
think it’s banks that are the ones that
help these businesses after all
Portland’s home to one of the greatest
banks in the country Umpqua who thinks
so highly of small businesses that they
have a website just to put them in the
spotlight they also do their part when
it comes to lending in 2015 they did
twenty six million dollars in small
business loans alone in one year but I
bet you didn’t know this port lenders do
that same dollar amount every two days
on food entertainment and apparel alone
every two days your small contribution
is big now you spending your money it’s
really important but where you spend it
maybe the biggest thing of all let’s
take coffee when you buy your morning
mocha Starbucks roughly ten cents of
each dollar stays in town the rest goes
off to other parts of the country and
world but when you buy that same mocha
at a local coffee shop like deadstock
coffee almost fifty cents of each dollar
stays in town go into a marketing
consultant bookkeeper or architect now
you’re not a douche bag if you shop at
Starbucks
[Applause]
they’re a great company I just want you
to realize the power that your money has
and the impact you can have in your own
city just from walking in a different
door when you came in here today I bet
you thought it was banks that had the
power to support small businesses
turns out it’s you my kids and I were
watching the Discovery Channel last week
and on came the show with the 10
deadliest animals in the world it had
all the usual suspects that you fear the
most when you’re walking on a forest
trail including the grizzly bear who
after being described they gave the
disclaimer that it wouldn’t help to run
or climb a tree because they can do that
better than you
and one failed swipe of their claws can
tear a man in half as I got to number
one on the list the narrator said
responsible for more deaths each year
than animals 2 through 10 combined is
the mosquito the mosquito it turns out
my daughter’s not Ana Fila phobic after
all she actually understands how small
is so big now small is a last word you
wanted to hear today after all Ted’s
about great gigantic ideas that have the
ability to cure cancer and world hunger
or make you laugh and tell you wet your
pants from people with a bunch of
letters after their names I’m not that
speaker and you know what big is
overrated small is doable
people don’t make small goals they dream
big but the work the work is small I’ve
got some work for you today my buddy
Neil is a body builder he’s a great big
guy and every day he loves to post his
meals on Instagram and
normally they’re bland and nothing you’d
write to the Food Network about but
every so often he has a cheat day and
I’m talking two large pizzas with a
milkshake chaser cheat day I want to
challenge you to have a cheat day week
or month cheat on Amazon and buy the
bedazzled Snuggie from a locally owned
store cheat on Walmart and buy your
groceries from a local grocer who more
than likely knows the name of the person
that grew the carrots that you bought or
cheat on your Starbucks barista every
Thursday and discover a mind-blowing
mocha at a sneaker themed coffee shop
because when you invest small you invest
in the well-being of the community and
when you invest in the well-being of the
community you ultimately invest in your
own health and strengthening the fabric
of your city you have more power than
you know imagine how many more mr.
Howard’s we could help if we just cheat
more
your small contribution is big
you
[Applause]
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