The state's first Multi-Cultural Business Expo will help underserved and nontraditional businesses to team up with others in ways that benefit the entire state during a difficult economic climate, according to organizers.

Like the theory that a rising tide raises all boats, United 4 Economic Development, which is organizing the event, believes that combining the business strengths of all ethnic groups improves community and economic development. And they believe great things will happen when big business and small business team up.

Plans for the expo were unveiled Monday on the Capitol steps at a news conference that included elected officials, business leaders and minority representatives.

The expo, slated for Nov. 17-18 at the Salt Palace Convention Center, is designed to bring diverse businesses together for a trade show, entertainment, networking, workshops and a "huddle" to help businesses that have not done so expand their access to contract and procurement venues of all types. Some workshops will be conducted in Spanish.

Many small, minority-owned businesses are especially challenged to find affordable ways to promote themselves, said Stanley Ellington, chairman of U4ED. "They are not generating enough revenue to do the type of marketing and promotion to succeed," he said, adding that the expo will provide small vendors a showcase of what they have to offer.

More than a half-million Utahns are members of ethnic minorities, and a great many of them have businesses of their own, according to the U4ED.

"United 4 Economic Development has a vision to be able to bring all of the community together so that the business world can see the one thing that really ties us together. That's business," said Cal Nez, expo chairman.

Ellington called it an "effort of strengthening and growing existing businesses in both urban and rural areas."

Salt Lake Mayor Ralph Becker hailed the expo as a chance "forge the partnerships and successes that come from folks working together." And he noted that "one interesting byproduct" of tough economic times is increased entrepreneurial effort.

U4ED is a coalition that includes the Latin-American, Pacific Islander, Asian, Black, Native American and Hispanic chambers of commerce, as well as other groups focused on economic development.

e-mail: lois@desnews.com