Fine, Silver and China from France,
warm foods from Canada,
rattan furniture from Indonesia,
for years, foreign countries have
exported those products to the Metroplex,
displaying them in World Trade Center
showrooms.
But beginning in April, in the midst of
these foreign showrooms, the World Trade
Center will house offices that will help
small and medium sized businesses locally
export their products.
We've got a good idea for a new widget,
but doesn't know where to market.
It doesn't know the regs to bring
it into another country, how to import,
export, all of these things.
And they're the ones that are generating
almost all the new jobs in America
today.
Fort Worth Mayor Bob Bollon, Dallas Mayor
Annette Strauss announced the upcoming
International Trade Center by calling
it a one stop shop for foreign trade
by saying that under one roof, potential
exporters will find the Small Business
Administration, the State Department of
Commerce information on how to ship
and which markets and if Washington
approves it, a bank that can lend
businesses up front money to begin
shipping their products.
As I
look at things like biotechnology,
any kind of communications,
telecommunications, electronics
gear, computer hardware
and
software, and that's just the start of a
long list, says Center President Scott
Grant, who adds a similar but
smaller Fort Worth Trade Center will open
next year.
Grant says his staff of 11 will also
work with area universities to begin
teaching international trade so
that our future entrepreneurs can
cash in on the growing world market.
Shelley Kofler Channel 5 News.