DETROIT – A local business is being praised for trying to break barriers in the City of Detroit.
The bottom line for the company is about much more than making money. It is about building a greater sense of community.
As the founder of Featherstone, Juan Carlos Dueweke-Perez, wears many hats. The company is a digital marketing and public relations firm that serves businesses in Detroit.
“Well, I started out the company back in 2015 as a photographer. And it was really evident that media and that public relations, and that marketing in general is like the service that is needed in every single business...We had to create a model that would make it more accessible to a lot of different businesses,” said Dueweke-Perez.
He knows a lot about what it takes to integrate members of the Hispanic community to fit in with the city.
“Well, when I think about Hispanic Heritage Month, I think that I am the amalgamation of two different cultures. I came from Mexico when I was nine, and I’ve been here for about 21 years, which to some people makes me an American, to some it doesn’t, right?
He says inspiring change begins with listening to one another.
“Literally, we all talk, but a lot of people have that trouble of listening and that’s pretty much what media and public relations are about," he added.
And what would fulfill his dream of owning a successful business?
“The first one is that black and brown people started working together more closely. And I know that it takes time. Because you have to break down specific barriers. The second one is that the City of Detroit becomes bilingual or trilingual by nature. And then the third one is as a company, we are working towards becoming worker owned,” he said.
National Hispanic Heritage Month runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. It starts middle-month to commemorate the anniversary of the independence for five Hispanic countries including Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua.