International Trade and Export - Major Growth Area for Small-Medium Sized Businesses

By Pete Turck

We have been blessed this summer with a great young Intern, Kedar Pavgi, an International Relations Major at William and Mary.  Yesterday he sent me an article and said "you just have to include this article in your next blog" and........he was right. As always when I listen to younger people I learn something new. Here are some interesting facts from the article:

• "according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative, 95% of the world's consumers live outside the United States"
• " small- to medium-sized businesses were responsible for 96% of manufacturer exports"
• "a report sponsored by Intuit and written by the Institute of the Future, predicts the emergence of an economic structure that will drive new business collaborations, creating greater opportunity and profitability for small businesses" through export.

The problem is that many small businesses lack the resources, primarily time and information, to market their products abroad in spite of significant demand for US goods and services.

Now, if you happen to be a Virginia company here's some good (actually great) news, Virginia has one of the very best export programs (http://www.exportvirginia.org/) in the country (other states have good ones also - I'm just familiar with this one because I'm a Virginia company). They provide support such as research, vetting (through their global network) and highly productive and subsidized trade missions. Jenee Andreev, JAndreev@yesvirginia.org is the contact in Northern Virginia - she's incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about promoting Virginia businesses abroad.  

A couple of cautionary notes to consider before you start counting your new stream of export revenue. U.S. Exporters must protect their businesses by applying Best Practices when it comes to U.S. Laws and Regulations; an effective compliance program minimizes your risk of hefty monetary fines.  It is every U.S. Exporter's responsibility to Protect National Security, Promote U.S. Foreign Policy, Prevent Diversion and Prevent Terrorism!

Anyway, if you have ever wondered about export, check out this article at.
 
http://csa.tsinghua.edu.cn/discoveryguides/entrepreneur/review.pdf

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