A Novle Leader: Activating the Latino community

By Johanna-Rosalye

Nobility serves as a compass for Carlos Velasco, Founder and CEO of Novle Community Activators. During his pre-teen years, he embarked on a multi-country journey that eventually led him to take the reins in leading and activating the Latino community in Arizona. 

An Immigrant Journey in the Making

An immigrant from Guayaquil, Ecuador, and a ‘niño del barrio’, Velasco was raised with a profound sense of community, which became the focal point of his life and his business. Raised by his grandmother, aunts, uncles, and everyone in between, he arrived in the United States at the age of twelve, accompanied by his aunt and grandmother. Their journey took them through Mexico, into Tijuana, Baja California, and finally across the border to the land of opportunity through California.

While Velasco was a student-athlete throughout junior high and high school, like many immigrant students, he couldn’t attend college due to his legal status in the United States and his lack of focus on education. Instead, he made an early decision to marry but later divorced as a young adult. Velasco remarried at the age of twenty-seven, bringing him to Arizona where he began a new journey and his story begins to unfold. 

The Shaping of a Novle Leader

The path to Velasco’s entrepreneurial and community activator journey began in the financial planning industry, driven by a desire to do more in the latino community. This opportunity led him to  Arizona Research Enterprises, a latino led advocacy group advocating for small business, education, advancement policies and immigration reform, among other causes. This advocacy group provided him a focus to help and get out in front of the latino community. This advocacy group gave him a platform to make a difference in the Latino community, and it was here that Velasco became deeply involved and recognized the potential for something greater. His interest grew in providing the Latino community with the opportunities available in the state.

Velasco’s dedication and leadership led him to the Arizona Chamber of Commerce as a Small Business and Corporate Director. Here, he began to conform the role as community leader and began creating value within the Hispanic community. Although the chamber achieved significant success for stakeholders and corporations and enjoyed three years of positive experiences, Velasco believed more could be done, especially for the small business community and Spanish-speaking migrants in Arizona.

Activating the Community

His next destination as a community leader was Local First Arizona, where he advocated for circulating more money within communities and the benefits of keeping money local. Velasco resonated with the concept of strengthening the local economy. He asked, “If we have such a huge economic input, why do we have such deficiencies? Why aren’t we a vibrant community?” He elaborated that ultimately it leads to the way the Latino community handles it’s money. These questions led him to establish a partnership with Local First Arizona with the intent fostering unity through alliances and collaboration within the community.

This partnership later evolved into an opportunity to develop a business accelerator program. Recognizing the barriers faced by many Latinos, such as language barriers and limited access to capital and credit, Velasco dedicated three years to this project. The program has continued to evolve and provide support to the Latino community in the valley for over a decade, with an impressive economic impact of over $52 million – a achievement of which he is immensely proud.

Shaping the Value of Community

After six years of working with the small business community, Velasco was ready to launch his own business,  Velasco Consulting LLC. He also become deeply involved in advocacy work, immigration reform, policies and continued support for the latino community. A year later, an idea was born to assist companies in tapping into the Latino market through a community-focused lens, seeking opportunities to integrate investments and brand equity building for their customers. This idea transformed the consulting firm into Novle Community Activators, now a full service multicultural marketing agency. Novle has the privilege of serving major brands, specializing in community engagement and community relations. 

Velasco’s core focus for Novle is family and community, values he has nurtured throughout his career and leadership. “Community, when fostered correctly, it provides people with the feeling of belonging, love, and representation,” said Velasco while emphasizing that it is what today’s society is lacking.Velasco’s vision for Novle, a “north star” as he defines it, is to do work that has both meaning and impact. He aims to empower and support the advancement of others.

A Novle Vision

Novle Community Activators is a community that collaborates and understands the value it brings. Velasco and his team are committed to removing barriers that hinder the Latino community’s progress. They provide opportunities for Latinos to thrive in America through community support. Whenever Novle opens a door, they ensure to hold it open, creating opportunities for others within the community. Collaboration within the Latino community enhances their collective impact, far greater than individual efforts.

“The more the latino community can infiltrate together, the more that can be done, rather than being one person trying to do it on their own.”

Paving the Road

Velasco and his family have faced numerous challenges over the years, but these challenges have paved the path to where he stands today. In facing those challenges, he has remembered to maintain the faith in the process and remained committed to achieving his goals. “It has been a process that constantly tests your willpower and will ask how bad you want it,” he described. This resilience is a hallmark of the Novle culture, where quitting is not an option, and every challenge is an opportunity to find a solution.

“Put your focal point in creating value for the people around you and it will be returned”

When asked about his grandest achievement, Velasco emphasized that family forms the core of his identity. Novle follows right behind, with a sense of pride in being a business owner. He acknowledged that “it is a hard endeavor being a business owner” and that it is not for the faint of heart. Velasco remains true to his values and objectives while also remembering not to take life too seriously. His resiliency through life and the process of who is has paid off in the different stages of his life.

He continually asks himself how he can have more fun with what he does, whether he’s dealing with challenging situations or making business decisions. He emphasizes that ‘you have to have fun’, much like a hero in an action movie. However, it’s equally important to recognize when you are no longer enjoying what you do. This is the time to reconsider your path. 

A Novle Future

What does the future hold for Carlos Velasco and Novle Community Activators? Velasco has a global vision for Novle, aiming to establish a foundation within the next five years while aspiring to become a media conglomerate capable of inspiring people to take action and get involved. Novle has solidified it’s clarity and value with current and future clients. The next step is to further develop the sense of community, according to Velasco’s vision. As for the community activator and leader, while he has respect for politics and those who serve but emphasizes that serving as a politician would need to be a calling. His primary focus remains his family and his business. ###

A Novle Call to Action

Novle Community Activators provides resources for community business owners by making a connection with the multicultural market. Some of the services the agency provides are branding, consulting, public and community relations, among other media related services. The agency gathers the community by partnering with valley organizations to organize events for professionals. The events brings the community together to network, and learn about opportunities available and bring awareness to a variety of topics.

Click here to learn more about Carlos Velasco and Novle Community Activators.