Anoose Taj opened his international grocery store 25 years ago and, though he's weathered good times and bad, the current economic slump has a unique trait.
"People are still coming, but they are not buying as much as they used to," said Mr. Taj, a native of Pakistan who came to Chattanooga 45 years ago. "If they come for one specific item, they'll just buy that, when before they would come for one item, but then shop for three items."
Mexico native Concepcion Hernandez said her family is sticking to buying the essentials since she's not working and her husband only does odd jobs.
"I'm not working so we only buy strictly what we need," said the 34-year-old as she walked out of Carnicerias Loa, off Broad Street, with her daughters and a small grocery bag. "Sometimes (the store) has sales and we buy that to stretch our money, but we don't buy what we used to."
With people having less money to spend, small businesses that cater to specific groups are seeing the effects of the economic downturn firsthand.
One of the things that will help any business survive is diversity, said Dr. Bruce Hutchinson, professor of economics at the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga.
"Ethnic businesses, particularly businesses offering product that appeals to a particular ethnicity, are probably less likely to have a diverse clientele," he said.
"If the clientele of that business falls on difficult economic times, the business will suffer significantly, whereas if they have a broader clientele, it might be that while one group gets hit hard, another doesn't and eventually helps pick up business," he said.
PDF: The Multicultural EconomyMINORITY BUSINESS OWNERS IN THE CHATTANOOGA AREA** Female: 10,551* Black: 1,833* Hispanic: 318* Asian: 614* American Indian and Alaska Native: 388*Note: The Chattanooga Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Marion, Hamilton and Sequatchie counties in Tennessee, and Catoosa, Dade and Walker counties in Georgia.Source: U.S. Census figures, 2002
The downturn is affecting ethnic businesses on both sides of the state line. In Hamilton County, the December overall unemployment rate was 8.9 percent, but it was 12.6 percent in Dalton, Ga.
And Lucila Luna is feeling the effects. Her bridal and quinceañera business has decreased by about 50 percent since she opened three years ago.
"There are a lot of people without jobs or those who do have jobs are trying to save money," she said, standing inside El Palacio de las Novias, or "The Brides' Palace," surrounded by colorful pink, blue and green gowns for every occasion. "There are a lot of events (such as quinceañeras, a girl's 15th birthday celebration) that have been canceled."
To keep his business afloat, Mr. Taj has been doing what Dr. Hutchinson recommends - diversifying. His customers clients still visit his store packed with Nigerian red palm oil, Peruvian Inca cola or Mexican tostadas.
"When we opened the store, international people started shopping and asking for specific items," said Mr. Taj, who worked as a medical technician in several area hospitals before opening his business.
Despite the economic downturn, Hispanics and Asians are among the national groups with the greatest purchasing power.
By 2014, one person out of every six living in the United States will be of Hispanic origin, according to "The Multicultural Economy 2009," a report by Jeffrey Humphreys, director of economic forecasting at the University of Georgia.
Hispanics' purchasing power is projected to rise from $212 billion in 1990 to $1.3 trillion in 2014, the report states.
Asians are not that far behind, with their buying power projected to increase from $116 billion in 1990 to $697 billion in 2014.
Iveth Cordoba and her husband, Roberto Alvarado, recently opened a new Latin American store off Market Street and cater to Central Americans. A Honduras native, Ms. Cordoba is focusing on four markets: Mexican, Honduran, Salvadoran and Guatemalan.
"It doesn't matter how critical the (economic) situation is, people are always going to buy food," she said. "If I only have $20, I'm not going to go to a restaurant, I'm probably going to go to the store and buy a couple of pounds of chicken and beans to feed my children."