March 28, 2024 The Newspaper Serving LGBT Los Angeles

Mark Morales energizes LA’s LGBT business social network

mark morales, president of the los angeles gay and lesbian chamber of commerce, photo courtesy LAGLCCBY T. S. LEONARD & DAVID EHRENSTEIN  |  Mark Morales, recently appointed President of the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, wears a lot of hats. It’s a good look for the leader of the Chamber he’s steering, because members of the LAGLCC—minority business owners—are, by nature, varied hat wearers themselves. To be an entrepreneur of any stripe requires a near-athletic degree of versatility; to do it as an unsupported minority can present an even greater, and often lonelier, challenge.

But using identity and diversity to a financial advantage is Mark Morales’ specialty. As the Vice President of the SBA division of HomeStreet Bank, he has spent nearly 20 years consulting financing with small businesses. He is an appointed member of the California Department of Insurance diversity task force. He pitches in to help husband Michael Mirch run their Asian antique importer, Charles Jacobsen.

His many varied professional capacities provide plenty of a-ha moments for Morales about best business practices, informing the seasoned and assertive leadership he brings to the Chamber. “We have very specific goals,” Morales says. “We plan on growing the Chamber by 20 percent. We are trying to certify everyone within our membership that would benefit from it.”

That certification process is key. The LA Chamber is one local contingent that works within the much-larger National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. The nationwide organization has its own certification status. Morales has a vision of working deliberately to interconnect businesses within the LA area that will ultimately draw lines across a national playing field.

“Part of our mission is connecting large companies to the LGBT suppliers,” he explains. “It’s all about relationships, and those relationships are created on the local level with [us].”

The usefulness of linking large corporations to LGBT suppliers was another one of Morales’ a-ha moments, from his experiences attending big business events as a representative of the Diversity Task Force. His work with the California Department of Insurance has been a continuing inspiration for rallying action amongst the Chamber.

“The first year I attended the [California Department of Insurance’s] Diversity Summit, there were three LGBT businesses represented there,” Morales explains, excitedly. “The following year in Sacramento, there were 22. Fully a quarter of the audience were LGBT businesses, and most of them were from Southern California, trained by me to be in those seats in front of those insurance companies. A 700 percent increase. All it took was one person talking about it for a year.”

Meeting Mark Morales, it’s no surprise he could drum up such support by simple word-of-mouth. Morales is a talker, but a quick one, an efficient one. It’s no surprise, given his busy professional calendar, that the word “hyperactive” comes to mind. He networks with seamless agility, able to caption one businesses’ operation to another in seconds, and determine how the two could help one another in just a few more.

This social character has seeped down through the ranks of the LAGLCC. At a recent networking event on the Sunset Strip, there were suited attorneys dishing furniture trends with interior designers. Publicists were talking politics with small non-profit leaders. Like any networking event, there were plenty of handshakes and elevator pitches floating around the bar. But the LAGLCC feels unique for its internally plural character.

The directory of registered businesses boasts a wide array of diversity within the community. There are recognizable names that run the gamut from Fresh Brothers to Morgan Stanley. And in between pizza and finance, there are delegates from real estate to restaurants to major media outlets. Brought together by their common minority identity, this rag-tag roundup of businesses big and small builds a collective community of support.   

“As much as I’d like to say it’s what you know,” Morales explains, “it’s who you know—connecting—and the relationships you create.”

The ever-multiplying membership of the Chamber is remarkable. When the organization began in 1979, as the Valley Business Association, it was only a handful of entrepreneurs, rallying together in reaction to the just-defeated Proposition 6—the proposed statewide ban on gays and lesbians working in California public schools. Long gone are the days that business owned by and catering to the LGBT community feel the need to present their allegiances carefully. For the Chamber today, the point is visibility.

“Acknowledging that the LGBT community is a viable consumer base is just good business sense,” Morales says. And in his professional opinion, considering that identity internally is just good business practice.

“It’s like this: here’s a list of 300 large corporations,” Morales explains. “Do you do business with any of these companies? Good! Then it benefits you to get certified, because that opens the doors to do business with the others.”

In its almost 40-year history, the LAGLCC has helped open many doors in the Southern California business world. Going forward, Morales is palpably giddy to see how that effect can be multiplied as it is applied across LGBT businesses and suppliers. His energy has been infectious, and the future of the Chamber seems assured to be a proactive, and possibly, hyperactive, one.

Related Posts

Cantonese Dim Sum Master Chef Tony Opens Hollywood Dim Sum at TCL Chinese Theatre

March 27, 2024

March 27, 2024

Experience Exquisite Dim Sum Creations in the Heart of Hollywood 97 years after its founding, the TCL Chinese Theatre will...

Fleurs et Sel Bakery Opens Storefront in West Adams, Welcomes Customers Three Days a Week

March 27, 2024

March 27, 2024

Indulge in Freshly Baked Cookies at the New West Adams Location Fleurs et Sel Bakery, known for its delectable cookies...

Easter Specials Guide: Brunch Spots, Desserts, and More in West Los Angeles

March 27, 2024

March 27, 2024

Discover the Best Easter Eats and Treats in LA for Your Holiday Celebration Easter is almost here, so here are...

(Video) Director Adam Wingard Talks About His Influences While Making GODZILLA X KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE

March 27, 2024

March 27, 2024

Director Adam Wingard Talks About His Influences While Making GODZILLA X KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE at the Beyond Fest Screening...

Judy Garland’s Teenage Bel-Air Estate Hits Market for $11.495 Million

March 27, 2024

March 27, 2024

“Wizard of Oz” Star’s Former Home Offers Piece of Hollywood History A Bel-Air estate commissioned by Judy Garland during her...

Attorney for Sean “Diddy” Combs Denounces Investigation as “Witch Hunt”

March 26, 2024

March 26, 2024

Legal Representative Criticizes Probe Amid Federal Sex Trafficking Inquiry An attorney representing Sean “Diddy” Combs criticized the investigation into the...

Historic Union Contract Ratified by Thousands of Hotel Workers At 34 Hotels

March 26, 2024

March 26, 2024

UNITE HERE Local 11 Negotiates Agreement Ensuring Wage Increases  Hotel workers, who spearheaded the largest hotel strike in modern U.S....

Human Rights Campaign’s Los Angeles Dinner Celebrates LGBTQ+ Advocacy and Unity

March 25, 2024

March 25, 2024

Notable Figures Gathered to Champion LGBTQ+ Rights and Combat Discrimination By Aneesha Pappy  The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s...

California Bars and Nightclubs Must Offer Drug Testing Devices Starting July 1

March 25, 2024

March 25, 2024

New Law Mandates License Holders to Provide Drug Testing Kits to Patrons Beginning July 1, establishments with Type 48 licenses...

Opinion: West Los Angeles Needs to Care about Veteran Homelessness

March 25, 2024

March 25, 2024

By Kelly Kravchuk  Veteran homelessness is a public health concern that impacts my West Los Angeles community. As a USC...

Federal Agents Raid Property Linked to Music Mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs In Holmby Hills

March 25, 2024

March 25, 2024

Authorities Conduct Searches in Los Angeles as Part of Ongoing Sex Trafficking Probe Federal agents from the Department of Homeland...

Biden Signs Government Funding Bill with Ban on Pride Flags at Embassies

March 24, 2024

March 24, 2024

White House Vows Repeal Amid Controversy Over LGBTQ Provision President Biden signed a huge government funding package on Saturday, which...

City of Los Angeles Pays Nearly Half a Billion in Liability Claims Over Four Years

March 24, 2024

March 24, 2024

LA Controller’s Report Reveals Significant Payouts from General Fund LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia has continued to audit the City...

Infamous Beverly Hills Mansion Where Menéndez Brothers Committed Murders Sells for $17 Million

March 24, 2024

March 24, 2024

Notorious Property Closes Deal Exactly 28 Years After Conviction A mansion in Beverly Hills, California, notorious for being the site...

Former Beverly Hills Therapist Indicted for Alleged Distribution of Child Sexual Abuse Material

March 24, 2024

March 24, 2024

Suspect Faces Federal Charges Following Investigation into Online Activity A former licensed marriage and family therapist based in Beverly Hills...