Bank opens Latino branch

Wells Fargo Bank opened the first of 16 planned Latino-focused branches Thursday, reiterating its commitment to serve Utah's diverse communities.

"I came to the United States about 35 years ago at a time when there (weren't) that many Latinos," said Silvia Grutter-Norman, Wells' Latino Banking manager for Utah. "I promised myself at that time that I would, once I learned English, that one of the things I would do is help the Hispanic community.

"I've been doing that ever since I came here at 14, and I'm very proud to head Wells Fargo's Latino market here in Utah. This is a project that Wells Fargo started over 150 years ago, when they hired their first stage coach driver that was bilingual."

The new branch, 1710 S. Redwood Road, is the first of Wells' planned multicultural branches, though branch manager Michelle Russo is quick to say that Wells "has always attempted to be culturally diverse, to meet the needs of all our customers."

Wells Fargo spokesman Mark Chapman said the bank is already in the process of refitting "two or three" branches with a multicultural emphasis. All 15 others should be complete within the next two years, he said.

Though no locations were disclosed, Grutter-Norman said the multicultural branches will be located "in the communities where the largest percentage of our Hispanic customers live and work."

The Redwood Road branch is unique, according to Russo, because of the vast array of cultures it serves in a relatively small geographic area.

"This section of town is very diverse," she said. In addition to the Spanish-speaking community, Russo said, "there's a huge Bosnian community, as well as Sudanese and Asian. It's a really diverse area, and it's important that our branch reflect that."

Signs and printed materials at the Redwood Road branch are in English and Spanish. Of the branch's 15 employees, Russo said eight are bilingual. Languages represented include Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and French.

"Our commitment — my commitment — is to be able to hire more bicultural and Latino team members, so that they can move up the levels in corporate Wells Fargo," said Grutter-Norman.

Miguel Rovira, executive director of the Utah Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, called Thursday's celebration "a momentous occasion."

"The opening of this branch is demonstrative of recognition, and that recognition is of corporate America to the Hispanic community in the state of Utah," Rovira said. "The state of Utah is a little bit like a thermometer for the rest of the United States — as our population grows, and as companies such as Wells Fargo open branches such as this, they're not only opening up opportunities for the Hispanic community, but they're opening opportunities for corporate America to participate in the market that the Hispanic population brings to the United States."

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