The companies attending the Messe were part of the Virginia STEP Grant program, which was specifically designed to send companies to the Messe in the hopes of identifying in-country partners to expand their business opportunities into Europe as a whole with an obvious focus on the German market in particular.

Four companies exhibited at the show and the remaining eight companies attended as visitors.  A successful endeavor overall for the companies, there were a few observations that companies walked away with that enriched their understanding of global business.  One client commented, “I think we just lit a fire under international sales… things are going to take off after this.”  After a number of meetings with foreign counterparts, this client had the enviable position of having to determine which company would be the best fit for an in-country partner.  Originally, the client had been nervous about what to expect in the meetings, the German company’s level of proficiency and what to expect going into meetings.  When all was said and done, he remarked, “Business is business—treat them right, talk to them the way you want to be spoken to and things will go well.”  His meetings went so well they evolved into lunch and learning about the other people’s families and interests—all good signs for establishing potential future business relationships.

Another observation Virginia attendees made was the importance of just being there—of seeing and being seen.  That takes companies to a new level, whether they were exhibiting or not.  The fact that they showed up on the other side of the Atlantic to have meetings with people, and were at the world’s largest industrial messe, showed that our Virginia companies were serious about doing business internationally.

The Hannover Messe offered a new feature for the first time this year called Match and Meet.  It is a database driven service that allows attendees to reach out to other exhibitors and attendees to schedule meetings based on companies’ goals and objectives.  This was a highly useful tool for companies who chose to take advantage of it.  When attending a trade show, companies will definitely get out of it as much, or as little, as they put into it.  Luckily for the Virginia delegation, they put a lot of effort into utilizing it to its fullest.

For many companies, it was their first time out of the U.S. to pursue international business.  While the Hannover Messe was a good fit for all companies at the macro level, there are even more specific international industry trade shows that can benefit companies.

If your company is considering attending an international trade show, remember a few things that our Virginia companies learned.  Be sure that the trade show you are considering attending is a good fit for your company.  If funds are limited, is there a more industry specific trade show you wish to attend?  Business is business and people are people.  For the people you will meet, treat them right and good things will come of it.  Take the trade show seriously and take full advantage of all the services offered.  If you remember those basic tips on top of whatever other sound business marketing knowledge you have, your trade show experience should be a good one.

The STEP Grant is made possible by the Small Business Administration as part of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, Section 1207.

What does that mean for our companies – both those who are already doing business in Korea as well as those who are considering entering the Korean market for the first time?  How can companies ensure that their products will receive preferential treatment on or after March 15?

On the first day the agreement takes effect, March 15 of this year, almost 80 percent of U.S. exports to Korea of consumer and industrial products can be imported duty-free. Nearly 95 percent of remaining tariffs will be eliminated within 5 years after that date, and most remaining tariffs will be eliminated within 10 years.

A web-based resource created by the International Trade Administration, the FTA Tariff Tool, is a great way to see if your product would benefit under the agreement. The database conveniently links to the latest U.S. tariff schedule and relevant rules of origin, helping you to determine the exact tariff benefit for your product and the rate at which the tariff is eliminated.

Additionally, nearly two-thirds of all U.S. exports of agricultural products to Korea will become duty-free starting March 15. This agreement also includes a number of significant non-tariff commitments that will come into force on March 15, including obligations to be transparent when developing and passing new regulations and laws that affect bilateral trade.

Commitments on strengthened protections for intellectual property rights benefiting American creators and innovators will also come into force on that day. Finally, commitments opening Korea’s $580 billion services market will also be in effect beginning March 15.

To ensure that your company’s product will benefit under the agreement, you will need to determine that the product is originating in either the territory of the United States or Korea under the rules of the agreement, and claim U.S.-Korea trade agreement benefits when importing.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will soon publicly release implementation instructions and interim regulations regarding U.S. imports under the agreement. Importers should closely monitor CBP’s FTA website and send inquiries on U.S. imports directly to fta@dhs.gov.

For more information, you can also contact your local U.S. Export Assistance Center and the U.S. Commercial Service at the American Embassy in Seoul, Korea.

The International Trade Administration’s U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement Portal should be your next stop!

JOIN US FOR A WEBINAR ON

GLOBAL ANTI-CORRUPTION LAWS:
INCREASED ENFORCEMENT, ENHANCING YOUR PROTECTION

April 24, 2012
7:00 pm – 8:00 pm Saudi Time
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Eastern Time
9:00 am – 10:00 am Pacific Time

Speaker
Eric A. Savage
Shareholder
Littler Mendelson, P.C.

Moderator
Debbi Alley
Membership Services Manager
U.S.-Saudi Arabian Business Council

The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the UK Bribery Act pose increased legal and compliance challenges for businesses – even those not based in those countries. The webinar will discuss:

• Highlights of the new regulatory environment
• Anti-bribery basics under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
• UK Bribery Act basics for non-UK businesses
• The Dodd-Frank Act and new rules, including bounty provisions
• Compliance implications and avoiding liability

This webinar is free and open to all interested parties.

If you are interested please register at www.us-sabc.org/littlerwebinar.

Information on our speaker is available at www.us-sabc.org/ericsavage.

For more information, please contact Vladimir Gololobov at vgololobov@us-sabc.org, or by phone at 703-962-9275.

About Littler Mendelson

Littler Mendelson is the largest specialty firm in the United States, with a practice limited to representing management in labor and employment matters.  This work encompasses representation of clients in litigation, arbitration, and administrative proceedings, as well as advice and counseling in all areas of labor and employment law.  Through its affiliation with the Ius Laboris alliance of employment law specialists, it has also assisted clients in global matters. The firm has also published a five-volume work on international labor and employment law, including chapters on Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East and the Gulf, and has represented clients from the Gulf in their United States operations, as well as American companies with questions about local law and its impact on operations outside the country.

Another export seminar entitled Quoting, Shipping and Getting Paid  is scheduled for Thursday, April 19, 2012 from 9am – 12noon at the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center, One Partnership Circle, Room 240, Abingdon, VA  24212.

Please join us as Kathy Edwards, President & Founder of Global Business Solutions and 2011 Exim Bank Broker of the Year, as she explains how to mitigate risk in being paid using the platform of a Proforma Quotation as well as a simple to understand presentation of Incoterms risks considerations.  Kathy is a well-known and much sought after presenter. She is known for her easy to understand style and humor.

Global Business Solutions is an export risk mitigation firm that prides itself on unparalleled service and performance. Global Business Solutions is committed to a partnership to enable clients to grow globally with minimal risk.  Their services are always tailored to you – the client’s unique needs. Global Business Solutions products include:  credit insurance, risk management, financing options, ocean marine insurance and training.

This will be an interactive, interesting session with plenty of opportunity for you to get involved and ask questions!

Who Should Attend: Seasoned Exporters but not limited to CEOs, CFOs, Sales Manager, Export Managers,  Office Managers, Shipping Managers/Supervisors,  Logistics Managers & staff, etc.

Admission is free but registration is required. To request a registration form contact Diane Thomas at dthomas@yesvirginia.org or 276-623- 1536.

Most importantly, we want to make businesses in Virginia aware of the benefits of exporting and of the support and help available to you in trying to expand your operational business area. Exporting helps local and regional economies!

Hope to see you soon!

Jim Loux, Lee Milton and Glenda Larson of  Allegheny Brokerage Company, Inc.  will be speaking on the topics of Inco Terms, Schedule B and HTS Number, 2012 HTS Code Changes, Certificate of Origin, Shippers Letter of Instructions and more.  During this workshop you will  learn how to correctly complete your international shipping documents and you will have opportunities to ask questions.

There is nothing like learning and discussing export related problems and issues from the “real world” of business with experts.

Co-sponsors for the workshop are Allegheny Global Logistics, Montgomery County Virginia Economic Development and VTKnowledgworks.

If you are interested in participating in this event, please contact Diane Thomas, 276-623-1536.

• Your “export” does not have to be a manufactured product;

In 2009, 26 percent of U.S. exporters were manufacturers. Their sales constituted 62 percent of the country’s exports. 34 percent of U.S. exporters were wholesalers, and their sales accounted for 23 percent of the country’s exports. That means that 38 percent of U.S. exporters and 16 percent of the country’s known export value fell into the “other” category, which includes producers of prepackaged software and books; freight forwarders and other transportation and warehousing firms, which often act as agents for the true exporter; business, engineering, and management services; oil and gas extraction companies; coal mining companies; and communication services companies.

• You don’t have to be a huge company to export;

SMEs (those employing fewer than 500 workers) comprised over 97 percent of all U.S. exporters and accounted for 32 percent of the country’s export value. Within that

• 96 percent of manufacturing exporters were SMEs; they contributed over 16 percent of the sector’s $710 billion in exports
• 99 percent of wholesalers were SMEs; they accounted for nearly 62 percent of the sector’s $248 billion in exports.
• Almost 97 percent of “other companies” were small- or medium-sized companies; they represented 47 percent of the sector’s $184 billion in exports.

• You don’t need multiple locations in the U.S. and abroad to capture international market share;

Only 10 percent of all identified exporters in the U.S. were multiple location companies. That means 90 percent of U.S. exporters were single location companies, and their exports contributed 24 percent of the U.S.’s export value. Moreover, the number of single location exporters increased by 9 percent from the year before, while the number of multiple location exporters decreased by 5 percent.

• You don’t have to conquer the whole world at once;

58 percent of exporting companies traded with only one foreign country. Only 0.4 percent of exporters shipped to 50 or countries.

• And you can start anywhere.

In 2009, 83 percent of exporters shipped to at least one of the top 25 U.S. trading partners. The largest number of companies shipped to Canada, followed by Mexico, United Kingdom, Germany, and China. However, of the top 25 U.S. export trading partners, only Saudi Arabia (4 percent), Columbia (1 percent) and Chile (1 percent) saw an increase the number of U.S. exporters they traded with. That means that U.S. exporters are exploring markets beyond the U.S.’s top 25 trading partners more and more.

Now you’re satisfied that you fit the “profile” of an exporter, but what kind of partners or customers should you look for in foreign markets?

The U.S. Census Bureau publishes the statistics above in their Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, but the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) publishes equivalent data for all of its participating countries. So not only can you compare yourself to other U.S. exporters, but you can also get an idea of what partners or customers might look like in foreign markets, and as it turns out, companies engaged in international trade in foreign markets are just as varied as they are in the United States.

For example, the OECD data shows us that in Canada

• In 2008 53 percent of importers traded with just one country, while 1.6 percent traded with more than 20 countries;
• In 2007 companies with less than 250 employees accounted for 94 percent of importing enterprises and 40 percent of the country’s imports; and
• In 2009 only 22 percent of importers were in manufacturing, but they accounted for 45 percent of the country’s total import value.

With this data at your disposal, you can begin to evaluate your export readiness, as well as potential international partners or customers. VEDP – International Trade can help with the rest.

Click here to read more.

Greenwood, British Columbia won the coveted best tasting tap water in the world with St. Henry, Ohio winning best in the USA.  The remaining places were claimed by American waters. Second place was Santa Ana, CA.  Three midwestern waters: Independence, MO, Oxford, MI and Lansing, MI claimed third, fourth and fifth places respectively.

The water tasting’s first Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to marketing guru and water executive James M. Stevens, widely credited with “inventing” the bottled water segment of the U.S. beverage industry when he introduced Perrier to America in the 1970s.  Stevens told the story of his efforts during the event’s seminar on Friday.  “We were pleased that Jim was able to join us at the seminar as well as the tasting,” said longtime watermaster, Arthur von Wiesenberger.  “There were groups of marketing students from around the region in attendance to hear some of his tips.”

Not only did bottled water come literally from all over the globe to compete including Argentina, Japan, Bosnia and Belgium but Bulgarians, Koreans and Chinese accompanied their water entries to the event.  First-time entrant, Jackson Springs, Manitoba won best bottled water.  Second place was Virginia’s Best, Edinburg, VA while third was captured by hometown Berkeley Springs water bottled as Almost Heaven from Manassas, VA.  Pristine Springs from nearby Clear Springs, MD placed fourth and there was a tie for fifth: Palomar Mountain Premium Spring Water, Escondido, CA and Agana, Buda, TX.   A total of 30 bottled waters were tasted.

Ling Han, in attendance from Guangzhou, China accepted the first-ever Watermaster’s Golden Award of Excellence for Kunlun Mountains Natural Mineral Water. According to von Wiesenberger, Kunlun won because of their uncompromising and passionate devotion to the quality of their bottled water products especially in the area of purity.  “Not only are they one of the highest elevation bottling plants in the world making their source well protected from contamination,” he said, “but their plant is one of the most pristine I’ve ever seen.”  Han stated that receiving this world class award would make Chinese mineral waters confident that they could produce pure water to benefit all Chinese consumers.  “We are very proud,” she said.

More than 150 people watched at the Country Inn in Berkeley Springs on Saturday night as eleven media judges spent hours tasting and selecting from among 77 waters sourced in twenty states and nine foreign countries. There were 32 municipal waters from a dozen states, Canada and South Korea.  “We have seven former gold medalists entered this year,”  said Klein Rone, “more than ever before.”

For the second year in a row, the Bosnian water Esparanza won the title of best sparkling water in the world.  Second was Antipodes from Whakatane, New Zealand.  “This is always a favorite when I bring it to parties,” said Klein Rone who applauded the judges’ choice.  Entered for the first time in two decades, Perrier Springs from Vergeze, France took the bronze.  First time entrant, Source Saint-Elie from Quebec placed fourth and Mountain Valley from Hot Springs, AR placed fifth. “Often the sparklings are all international,” said Klein Rone.  “It was good to have two American entries this year.  We were happy to welcome newcomer American Summit from Wyoming and their representatives.”  Eight sparkling waters entered.

The purified category was won by two-time gold medal winner, Claire Baie of Oak Creek, WI.  “They won the first year we had this category in 2001 and again in 2006,” reported Klein Rone.

“It was another wonderful year for the longest running and largest water tasting in the world,” said von Wiesenberger. “Berkeley Springs is the granddaddy of them all.”

The crowd was interested in the peoples’ choice packaging competition where it was their votes that chose which of the ten entrants was the most alluring.  MyCause Water, Mechanicsville, MD won first place.  “Their wavy lines and peekhole in the bottle captivated the crowd’s imagination,” said Klein Rone.   The sleek glass bottle of American Summit, Clark, WY took the silver.  HumanKind Water of Laurel Run, PA was third,  Source Saint-Elie of Quebec took fourth and Hawaii at Iolani Palace, Big Island, HI, fifth.

Conclusion of the daylong water tasting is the famed “water rush” where the audience is invited to take home hundreds of bottles of water sent as part of the judging.  “I spent about six hours arranging all the waters in a display,” said Jeanne Mozier, an event founder.  “The crowd spent less than ten minutes making it all disappear.  It’s like a Tibetan sand mandala,” she laughed.  “I was pleased to see our favorite couple from Brooklyn in the rush.  Peter and Cynthia Lloyd come every year especially for the water tasting – and the rush.”

The eleven media judges selected by Klein Rone  included representatives from three major television networks and WV Public Radio as well as print outlets.  They were instructed by von Wiesenberger to look, sniff and taste each water under guidelines similar to those in a wine tasting. The waters were rated for each attribute including appearance (it should be clear – or slightly opaque for glacial waters), aroma (there should be none), taste (it should taste clean), mouth feel (it should feel light), aftertaste (it should leave you thirsty for more). Waters were tasted in four separate flights over two days.

The 23rd annual Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting is scheduled for Saturday, February 24, 2013.  For more information on Berkeley Springs or its water tasting, call 1-800-447-8797 or check online at www.berkeleysprings.com.

Best Municipal Water 2012

Best in the World – Greenwood, BC, Canada

Best in the USA – St. Henry, OH

2nd place –Santa Ana, CA

3rd – Independence, MO

4th – Oxford, MI

5th – Lansing, MI

Best Bottled Water  2012

1st –  Jackson Springs Natural Premium Spring Water, MB, Canada

2nd – Virginia’s Best Natural Artesian Water, Edinburg, VA

3rd – Almost Heaven, Manassas,VA bottling Berkeley Springs water

4th – – Pristine Springs, Clear Springs, MD

5th – Palomar Mountain Premium Spring Water, Escondido, CA

5^th – Agana, Buda, TX

Best Sparkling — 2012

1st – Esparanza, Tesanj, Bosnia

2 – Antipodes, Whakatane, New Zealand

3 – Perrier Springs, Vergeze, France

4 – Source Saint-Elie, Saint-Elie-de-Caxton, PQ, Canada

5 – Mountain Valley Springs Water, Hot Springs, AR

Best Packaging — 2012

1st – MyCause Water, Mechanicsville, MD

2nd – American Summit, Clark, WY

3rd – HumanKind Water – Laurel Run, PA

4th – Source Saint-Elie, Saint-Elie-de-Caxton, PQ, Canada

5th – Hawaii at Iolani Palace, Big Island, HI

Best Purified Drinking Water — 2012

1st – Claire Baie, Oak Creek, WI (gold in 2001 and 2006)

2nd – Nestle Pure Life, Allentown, PA

3rd – Rain Fresh Oxygen-Rich Purified Water – Garland, TX

4th — Berkeley Springs Purified Water – Berkeley Springs, WV

5th – Hamilton On Tap, Hamilton, OH

For more information or to submit photos, contact:
Rebekah Vint
Marketing Manager
(804) 545-5759
rvint@yesvirginia.org

The Beyond Virginia Calendar is designed to highlight outstanding Virginia companies that market products and services internationally, and to offer a unique opportunity for these companies to share their international success stories.  Best of all—it’s FREE!

Starting in late 2010, Kazos Group approached the VEDP for international trade assistance into a series of target markets south of the border. Aided by its network of partners and consultants as well as its resourceful in-house research team, VEDP helped Kazos Group identify, contact, and successfully reach key potential clients during several local market visits and scheduled trade missions.

Most recently, thanks in large part to Luis Solera, VEDP´s in-country consultant, and VEDP’s headquarters logistical help,we found great success in our recent visit to Costa Rica.  Luis and the VEDP were instrumental in helping us achieve a great round of meetings with key decision makers in one of our main target markets.

Equally important, we’ve been working together with the VEDP team to find consultants in countries where they currently don’t have a representative.  Their willingness to listen to us and help us find solutions for these new markets is a sign of a great partner.

As a growing company, Kazos Group needs all the assistance it can get and the VEDP’s global network program has been an invaluable resource for us.  We have high growth targets for this year and plan on working closely with the VEDP to reach new markets.