Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/484021
w w w.in s i g h t o n m f g . c o m March 2015 • /INSIGHT ON MANUFACTURING | 17 missing a huge customer base" by not exporting, Sinnott says. "If you look at China, they're going to have a huge number of billion-dollar companies in the next 10 years. at will create many more middle-class people and their people will demand products." A trade mission to South America planned for last fall in conjunction with Global New North, an initiative of the nonprofit New North Inc., attracted interest from just one northeastern Wisconsin company that ended up visiting Columbia in March through WEDC's International Market Access Grant, Sinnott says. "One of the things I hear from companies is they say, 'Well, the economy has come up and we're doing really well,'" Sinnott says. "Companies shouldn't wait until a downturn to export. e time to start addressing the export market is when your company is doing well." Global New North is trying again to interest 10 companies in participating in a different trade mission, this time to either Canada or Mexico, and not until Spring 2016, says Jerry Murphy, executive director of New North, Inc. "What we learned is that we were COUNTRY VALUE OF EXPORTS % CHANGE FROM 2013 Canada $7.94 billion +5.5% Mexico $2.84 billion +12.7% China $1.56 billion -5.7% Japan $901.9 million -3.4% United Kingdom $848.3 million +24.9% Wisconsin's Top Five Export Destinations in 2014 Source: Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation 9 2 0 . 3 7 6 . 9 2 8 8 b e c k p r o t o t y p i n g . c o m D I M E N S I O N T O T H E 3 r D 3-D P R I N T I N G C H A N G E S E V E R Y T H I N G way, way, way too short in our timeline to be able to recruit companies to participate (in the South America venture)," Murphy says. "So out of that came an appreciation for the need to be way ahead of the decision- making timeline." Secondly, they learned that new-to-exporting countries were reluctant to start with South America. Global New North also is seeking a grant from the Economic Development Administration to investigate foreign direct investment in the region, Murphy says. "If we had a pretty good feel for why foreign companies have made investments in the New North over time, if we understood what the drivers were for those decisions and if there were some common elements across multiple industries, we might be able to develop a strong selling proposition that anticipates those things," Murphy says. While on the Western European trade mission, WEDC is also working to attract direct foreign investment from Western Europe. "When we look at the supply chain in Wisconsin, we're looking for gaps and we would seek companies who could support that," Sinnott says. While WEDC sometimes hears concern about added competition, the flip side is that building a stronger industry promotes university research, education and attracts more companies related to that industry. "So I think that's a really strong argument for foreign direct investment," Sinnott says. F Global export experts To find assistance with developing your export business, visit: thenewnorth.com/strategic- initiatives/global-new-north/ global-new-north-directory/ To learn more about the Global New North trade venture in Spring 2016, contact Jerry Murphy at JMurphy@thenewnorth.com.