l YEAR IN REVIEW 2009 l
ABOUT SACC-PHILADELPHIA
HISTORY
Founded in New York in 1906, the Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce (SACC) is one of the oldest
organizations abroad of its kind. Today, the SACC network is comprised of 20 regional Chambers across the
United States and is the second largest European chamber of commerce in the US in terms of members.
SACC-Philadelphia was founded in 1999 as a non-profit member organization serving the Pennsylvania,
southern New Jersey, and Delaware region. Our mission is to encourage and promote an exchange of
technology, trade, and culture between Scandinavia and the Greater Philadelphia region, while providing
members with a spectrum of services and social events.
When SACC-Philadelphia was founded by Erwin Apell and Leif Biederman in 1999, Ulf Hammarskjöld generously donated an office space for SACC-Philadelphia in the building of his company. The office was located
in King of Prussia, a center for many organizations and companies 30 minutes from Philadelphia. In 2005, the
office was moved to the heart of Center City Philadelphia, and is now located in the Bellevue together with,
among others, the Japanese-American Chamber of Commerce and the Chilean-American Chamber of
Commerce.
The Greater Philadelphia area is the fourth largest regional economy in the U.S. The area is conveniently located in the center of the northeast corridor, between New York and Washington, D.C. Due to the location,
Philadelphia has much to offer any company interested in doing business in a lively and flourishing region
with many opportunities.
MISSION STATEMENT AND GOALS
Our mission is to encourage and promote an exchange of technology, trade, and culture between Scandinavia and the Greater Philadelphia region, while providing members with a spectrum of services and social
events.
The short-term goal of SACC-Philadelphia is to develop the services provided to members, increase the
number of corporate members, and increase the focus on charity.
The long-term goal of SACC-Philadelphia is to be able to offer all members and non-members a wide selection of business-related services and substantially increase the number of members in order to create further
networking benefits.