A consortium of tribes has created the Native American Group to promote tribal, First Nations and Indian businesses.

Richard Bowers Jr, the president of the board of directors for the Seminole Tribe of Florida, came up with the idea. He believes tribes can help each other succeed.

"Here we have all these cafes, casinos -- everybody eats a hamburger," Bowers tells CNN of his tribe's Hard Rock enterprise. "And than (I) realized that we don't have enough beef to supply our own needs, and that's when I reached out to other Native Americans that did have cattle."

The group officially launched last fall. It now counts more than 100 tribes and more than 100 Indian businesses as members.

"I view this as historic in nature," Donald Laverdure, the chief legal counsel for the Crow Tribe of Montana, told CNN. "We haven't had first-nation to first-nation actually occur, and now with the success of the Seminoles and others, they have an opportunity to help tribes such as ourselves."

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Native Americans see unity as path to prosperity (CNN 5/8)