American women business owners embark on international trade mission

Business America, Feb 18, 1985

American Women Business Owners Embark On International Trade Mission

The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) is organizing a women's trade mission to London, Frankfurt, and Madrid May 24-June 5.

At least 15 women who are interested in expanding their businesses overseas will participate in the mission as delegates.

"The prime objective of the mission,' explains Janel Landon, Chairperson of the mission and former President of the Chicago Chapter of NAWBO, "is to promote U.S. service industries--especially those services that are in greatest demand in London, Frankfurt, and Madrid, such as high technology, telecommunications, tourism, insurance, training/consulting/recruiting, franchising, healthcare and retail business.'

According to the latest available statistics from the Small Business Administration, women-owned businesses are the fastest growing segment of all new businesses in the United States and more than half of these are in the service sector.

Landon, who is also President of Travelbound, Ltd., a travel management company based in Chicago, specifies another major goal of the mission: "Through this mission, we are trying to encourage women who are considering expanding their businesses to look beyond domestic markets for growth. We are trying to present the international marketplace as an open and promising place to do business. This mission will introduce the American woman business owner to the foreign commercial world by allowing her to engage in business through scheduled appointments with prospective clients.'

Landon personally went to Europe to set up many important meetings and contacts for the mission. In London, she met with representatives of the American Embassy and the American Chamber of Commerce, as well as the media and other local groups.

Gerald Marks, the U.S. Commercial Counselor Landon met with at the American Embassy in London, was enthusiastic about the upcoming trade mission. He informed Landon that, "our major objective for 1985 here at the Embassy is to bring U.S. service industries to the United Kingdom.' According to Landon, Marks was instrumental in helping to develop what should be a productive and informative program for the delegates when they are in London.

Landon also met with officials from the Small Business Administration, the Department of Commerce, and the State of Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, who were eager to extend the services of their agencies to help plan and promote the trade mission. The Small Business Administration is cosponsor of the trade mission and will assist NAWBO in conducting a two and a half day training program that will be held March 29 in Chicago to help prepare mission delegates for their venture into exporting.

In addition to meetings with prospective customers and "how-to' seminars on selling goods and services in the U.K. and West Germany, mission members will also have an opportunity to attend receptions given by the German Women Entrepreneurs and the British Association of Women Executives. In Madrid, delegates are invited to participate in the Annual Les Femmes Chef d'entreprise Mondiales (Women Business Owners of the World) World Congress, which is comprised of women business owners from 18 countries.

Dick Durkin, the Regional Administrator of the Chicago SBA, sums up the general feeling of enthusiasm for the mission that those involved exude: "This trade mission is exciting as well as significant. It brings together several emerging factors of our economy, namely women business owners and the role of the service industry in export trade. Both forces are expanding their contribution to our economy and I believe this will be the forerunner of the further exploration of new markets in the future.'

For further information on the NAWBO trade mission, contact Betty Burns, Administrative Director, NAWBO, 645 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 1058, Chicago, Ill. 60611; tel. (312) 951-9110.

Photo: JANEL LANDON