CEO Marvis Aragon, Jr. talks about the joys and challenges of running the seven businesses that benefit the Acoma people.

X For about 2,000 years, the Acoma people, a Native American Indian tribe, have quietly prospered in scenic New Mexico. But these days, their community is enjoying a renaissance of sorts, thanks to the unprecedented efforts of the business arm behind it.

In just over a decade, Acoma Business Enterprises, which was formed in 1996 by the tribe’s leaders as the unifying organization for its business initiatives, has grown from a bingo hall and a modest gas station equipped with a laundry facility into a multi-million-dollar entity that spans a triple-diamond-rated hotel and casino, a spectacular new cultural center, and land and wildlife conservation companies. Revenue from those businesses has transformed the Acoma pueblo, whose Sky City Village is the oldest continuously inhabited tribal community in North America, into a thriving economic center.

Acoma Business Enterprises does not release specific financial information, but its growing revenue stream has provided a marked increase in the quality of life for the community. Among the benefits are a public safety facility, an upgrading of the pueblo’s current water and sewer facilities, and education initiatives, including a new pre-school.

Marvis Aragon, Jr., Ceo

“The amount of change that has occurred economically in such a short period of time is incredible,” said Marvis Aragon, Jr., CEO. “In the 1950s, many of our people were just learning the English language, let alone concepts of science, business and finance. So we’ve come a long way in a very short period.”

Tradition of tourism
Acoma Business Enterprises spans seven companies in the industries of tourism, gaming and entertainment, and land management. Last May, Acoma unveiled its multi-million dollar, 40,000-square-foot Sky City Cultural Center and Haak’u Museum, which spurred a new wave of tourism to the Acoma community. The pueblo attracts more than 80,000 visitors annually from around the globe to tour Sky City. The community sits atop a 370-foot cliff on a 70-acre mesa, providing visitors with a breathtaking look at the surrounding geography and a firsthand look into Native American culture and history.

Cultural tourism was Acoma’s first business enterprise, which began in 1903 with formal tours through the pueblo, Aragon said. Acoma Business Enterprises’ focus on cultural tourism reflects the roots of the Acoma people, who historically have been known for their warm, welcoming nature.

“Acomas have always been hospitable,” Aragon said. “We welcomed the first visitors to the area, the Spaniards, the Conquistadors. To this day, we’re always encouraged by our elders to welcome visitors, invite them in, give them something to eat.” ABE eventually expanded that philosophy into a separate business niche, highlighted by the completion of the 135-room Sky City Hotel in 2001. The hotel, which includes a restaurant, is consistently booked during peak tourism season in Albuquerque, which is about 65 miles away. At the same time, ABE has successfully penetrated other segments of the tourism market, with two popular travel centers located along busy Interstate 40.

As its presence in the tourism industry grew, Acoma ramped up partnerships with various convention bureaus and organizations in the industry, including the New Mexico State Tourism Department. Combined with an aggressive marketing and advertising campaign, that strategy has brought in tourists from all over the world.

And as more and more tourists come through the community, ABE has strengthened its commitment to preserving the pueblo. Earlier this year, it received a huge boost in achieving that objective with its designation as the nation’s first Native American National Trust Site by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The tribal council and the National Trust signed a cooperative agreement, which gives the tribe access to preservation, conservation and technical services, special grant funds, and marketing programs available only to National Trust Historic Sites.

Expanding markets
After its move into the tourism industry, the tribe expanded into the land and cattle market with the Acoma Game and Fish and Land and Cattle enterprises, both of which are prospering, Aragon said. Acoma Game and Fish sponsors big-game hunts, while Acoma Land and Cattle oversees three ranches with about 230,000 combined acres. Both enterprises are heavily involved in conserving and protecting natural resources, Aragon said.

In the 1980s, Acoma became the first tribe in New Mexico to move into high-stakes bingo. The issue of using tribal land for gaming purposes has been immersed in controversy for years, but Aragon said Acoma entered the market because the tourism industry hit a major slump. Faced with high rates of unemployment that crippled the Acoma community, the tribal council decided to move into gaming as a way of creating jobs for its people and bringing much-needed sources of revenue into the community. “At the time, socioeconomic conditions in the area were very difficult,” Aragon said. “Getting into gaming was a difficult decision for the tribal council at the time, but it was more about taking care of our people.”

Core tenant
The largest employer in Cibola County, New Mexico, Acoma Business Enterprises employs more than 700 individuals, about 49% of who are Acoma members, with another 25% being Native Americans of other heritages. As Acoma diversifies into new markets (telecommunications and manufacturing are possibilities), Aragon envisions the number of employees will approach 1,000.

While Aragon said one of the organization’s core tenants is helping the Acoma community maintain high employment levels to bring revenue back into the pueblo, just as important is ensuring that each individual’s job experience translates to more than simply showing up for work. Eventually, he plans to focus on encouraging individuals to go into business for themselves. In addition, Acoma invests heavily in training, which encompasses the issues of alcoholism and gaming addiction.

“We want people to come in and find a job that promotes self-awareness and allows them to develop self-confidence,” he said. “That transitions back into the home and into the community. Sure, we provide them with competitive salaries and benefits packages, those things are important, but just as important is making sure that they’re happy and bringing that back into the community.”

Blane Bachelor is an Atlanta-based freelance writer who covers travel and business. She can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .