Your gift of $70 underwrites the event for one participant, so they can hear the stories of immigrant entrepreneurship and attend workshops to kickstart their business.

Fundraisers

Reaching our goal of $2,240 will allow us to make the awards ceremony meaningful for honorees by including their family and friends in our luncheon.

Reaching our goal of $7,000 will allow us to produce videos of each of our honorees to show at the event. These videos are accessible by the public.

Immigrant Entrepreneurs Summit

IES is culturally sensitive and community-connected business platform with a mission to bring businesses of diverse backgrounds together to share, learn, and celebrate the immigrant entrepreneurship experience and contribution to the overall community. In 2008, IES started as a practical effort to give immigrants in the Des Moines, IA the tools they need to succeed in business. We were seeing immigrant-owned businesses having difficulty with understanding regulations, with devastating impact on their business. The group that became the leadership of IES were immigrant business-owners who wanted to ensure that others in their community could succeed, and that entrepreneurship could be a pathway for many to gain greater independence and better future for themselves and their families. 

Over twelve years, IES contributed to the formation of 1,415 new companies, creating 7,415 new jobs. This data are from business owners who have formed companies as a result of IES. We are now growing into a year-round platform, replicating the success of the National IES into other cities.