International business is changing the world and a lot of small businesses recognize that and consider doing business internationally , but they don ’ t quite know how to go about that …; this is what the Council ’ s mission of “ Bringing the World Together through Trade ” encompasses – to help people do business internationally .
trade . I am very familiar with Chinese companies , having worked for a multitude of them . When I came to the United States , I met a lot of local people and began understanding the ways that American companies do business . The countries have a lot of differences , so putting my knowledge to use , I began practicing consulting and trade – buying from China and selling in the US and vice-versa . I can best describe my professional status as an International Trade Consultant .
Katia : Tell us more about the Houston International Trade Development Council ( HITDC ). What services does the Council provide ?
JW : I am the current Chairman and Val Thompson is the President of HITDC . Even before forming the Council , we set up trade missions from Houston to other countries . Val led a lot of trade missions to Africa coming to the USA , helping participants conduct a plethora of events and meetings . We hold events outside of Houston as well ; sometimes in New York , sometimes in Boston . International people come here not only for meetings , but aiming to learn , so we not only offer a lot of inhouse training , but we partner with schools such as University of Houston , Houston Community College , St . Thomas , and Rice University . In addition , we foster relationships with Universities located in cities other than Houston , such as Harvard , MIT , and Stanford , where we help Chinese delegations obtain training .
When we do outbound trade missions , the country hosts set up meetings for our members with local businesses ; reciprocally , sometimes the country hosts and their affiliates come to Houston and ask us to do the same for them . For example , last year we went to Hong Kong and met even small businesses are affected by international implications – sometimes they need international suppliers ; if they buy directly they can cut costs and gain a more competitive advantage . Other times , if they utilize the internet , they can sell internationally . Even if a small business and never goes outside of their home country , it can still sell across borders .
International business is changing the world and a lot of small businesses recognize that and consider doing business internationally , but they don ’ t quite know how to go about that . When people go to another county , some don ’ t know how to book a hotel , how to use transportation , how to set up a meeting , how to utilize the credit system , whether the customer or supplier can be trusted or not , and they really need help ; this is what the Council ’ s mission of “ Bringing the World Together through Trade ” encompasses – to
International business is changing the world and a lot of small businesses recognize that and consider doing business internationally , but they don ’ t quite know how to go about that …; this is what the Council ’ s mission of “ Bringing the World Together through Trade ” encompasses – to help people do business internationally .
while I covered China . We decided to form a non-profit organization in Houston to help other people who were interested in doing international business , just like us , so we formed the HITDC . We began organizing trade missions mostly to Asia , Africa , and South America . This was the original idea of why we wanted to form the HITDC , but subsequently we not only organized inbound and outbound trade missions , but also hosted international delegations with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council , so this year they asked us for assistance in coordinating meetings for them to promote their businesses when they visit Houston . These relationships are multilateral .
Katia : How is the HITDC helping Americans who are interested in doing business internationally ?
JW : We focus on small businesses first . In today ’ s business environment , help people do business internationally .
Katia : What other plans do you have for the rest of the year ? Will you be undertaking any trade missions or hosting any foreign delegations ?
JW : We aim to organize even more outbound and inbound trade missions as well as to host events such as the upcoming Global Seven ( G7 )
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