Our next quarterly ExportExchange breakfast event on Wednesday 29th November will see some of the region’s leading experts on the Chinese market coming together to share their experiences with up-and-coming Yorkshire exporters in a live panel-style seminar chaired by business journalist David Parkin.
Sean Jarvis, commercial director of Huddersfield Town Football Club, will not only be welcoming attendees to his home turf, but will also be talking about some of the challenges the club faced when dealing with Chinese businesses as well as the £3m shirt sponsorship deal the club has secured with Chinese gaming company Ope Sports.
Another successful exporter to the land of the dragon, Dr David Mandley, CEO of TissueMed , will explain some of the high and lows the Leeds-based medical device manufacturer underwent as it explored China’s huge potential. Experts from The Big Word, the global translation provider which has offices in China, will also be on hand to discuss how it has taken its services from Yorkshire to China.
Richard Kaye, chairman and CEO of Fired Up Corporation will provide a unique insight into China from a different perspective. The company, an award-winning manufacturer of appliances for the domestic heating market and for international hospitality, has operated a factory in China for 12 years in addition to its Huddersfield manufacturing facilities. Located in Zhongshan, the Chinese operation employs 200 staff and Richard will share his first-hand knowledge of navigating his business in a very different culture.
Finally, Joanna Lavan of Connect China, the largest Chinese business support consultancy in the North of England, will be available to give advice to would-be exporters.
The availability of current funding for export, research and trade missions will also be discussed.
Launched in July to bring together experts in overseas trade within firms from the Leeds City Region, the ExportExchange.co.uk initiative is a peer to peer mentoring initiative. It has already helped many growing exporters who have registered for the service to benefit from the knowledge of more experienced Yorkshire mentors or ‘patrons’.
The quarterly events from ExportExchange have been designed to provide engaging, real life examples of how businesses in the region have optimised export opportunities. They also highlight the resources available to new or growing exporters, from matched funding and grants to research services, export documentation and loan funding.
The ExportExchange programme is supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and backed by the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP), the Department for International Trade (DIT), and a number of private sector export specialists.
Any businesses interested in attending the free event should register interest here. It runs from 8am to 10am on Wednesday 29 November at the John Smith’s Stadium, Huddersfield.