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Ford, Michigan Hispanic Chamber Generate Business for Minority Suppliers

1 September 2000

Ford, Michigan Hispanic Chamber Generate Business for Minority Suppliers

    SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Aug. 31 Ford Motor Company
and the Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce today are hosting a networking
seminar that will link together 150 Detroit area majority and minority
suppliers.
    The daylong seminar -- held at the Westin Hotel here -- is a way to
generate business for minority suppliers.
    "This event is about the economic empowerment of minority communities,"
said Carlos Mazzorin, group vice president, Global Purchasing and South
America, Ford Motor Company.  "It's important that minorities buy from other
minorities who turn around and put the money back into minority communities."
    This is the fourth networking seminar hosted by Ford in the last year.
"Ford held similar seminars in Chicago in 1999 and in St. Louis and Cleveland
earlier this year that were very successful," said Rich Honecker, Ford's
executive director of Global Facilities, Materials and Services Purchasing.
"The feedback we received from participants in the other seminars indicated
that each seminar generated about $15 to $20 million of new business to
minority suppliers."
    In total, each minority-owned company will have the opportunity to present
itself to 54 potential customers during the seminar.  The event's goal is to
draw 900 formal sales calls in the 30 days following the seminar.
    Ray Jensen, director of Ford's Minority Supplier Development Office, said
after Detroit, a networking seminar is planned for Atlanta in the fall.
    "Ford purchases more than $3.3 billion a year of goods and services from
minority-owned businesses making our program the largest in the country,"
Jensen said.  "The networking seminars help elevate Ford's program beyond
simply being a good customer.  We also want to be good corporate citizens, and
these seminars help us meet this objective."
    Ford suppliers from the Detroit area that will participate in the seminar
include ASG Renaissance, Mexican Industries, Gonzalez Design Group and Ideal
Steel.