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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 17 M A R C H 8 , 2 0 2 1 D I V E R S I T Y / E Q U I T Y / I N C L U S I O N F O C U S He's already sparked growth, with six former workers starting their own shops, he says. People come as far away as Portsmouth, N.H., and Rockland to his Brunswick shop, which is on Maine Street. Reyes wanted to cre- ate a "family-friendly, multi-ethnic, multi-generational" shop, he says. Reyes is proud of the mix of clientele and workers. "We have a Salvadorian. A Jamaican. An Italian. Two Irish. We're all over the map," Reyes says. Reyes aims to open a hair acad- emy in the next year to teach hair styling. He wants to locate the school north of Brunswick to draw custom- ers from other towns where multi- ethnic services are hard to find. "I want to create my own Portland," Reyes says. Reyes admits it was hard being a Puerto Rican who moved to Maine in high school when he didn't speak English and his school lacked classes in English as a Second Language. "ere's no diversity in Maine. No ESL. It's really hard and you need a thick skin," Reyes says. Kings and Queens grew much the way many small businesses do — through word of mouth and some grit, experts say. A state lacking in diversity Small businesses in Maine employed 56.9% of the state's private workforce in 2018, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. In a state that's more than 90% white, however, it makes it more complicated for small businesses to diversify. "When you're a small business, you're running a business, you're chief cook and bottle washer and you don't have time. How do you diversify your workforce when you look at the demographics of the state? Given the size of the labor pool, you're com- peting with large companies. Small companies will never be as diverse as a WEX-type company," says Saïd Eastman, CEO of JobsIneUS, which operates JobsInME. "e lack of transportation in the state is a problem. ere's diverse pop- ulations in Lewiston, but how do you get that population spread throughout workplaces in the state without trans- portation?" Eastman says. C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » There's no diversity in Maine. No ESL. It's really hard and you need a thick skin. — Adrian Reyes Kings and Queens Hair Studio Adrian Reyes, owner of the Kings and Queens Hair Studio in Brunswick, wanted to create an atmosphere where people of any background or gender would feel comfortable. P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY OPENING DOORS TO YOUR SUCCESS 207.772.2422 | malonecb.com Malone - a leader in the commercial real estate market in Maine Portland | ME Portsmouth & Manchester | NH Boston & Woburn | MA TAX | ASSURANCE | ADVISORY A Relationship You Can Count On BNNCPA.COM | 207.879.2100