His office cuts red tape, leaves smiles in trade

Trade office helps firms do business across borders

Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal - by Danek S. Kaus

When Aerobie Inc., in Palo Alto, made a deal with a distributor in
Mexico, it didn\'t anticipate any problems opening a new market for its
sports toys. After all, the North American Free Trade Act had
streamlined the process of cross-border trade. Or so the company
thought.

When the shipment of the company\'s toys reached the border, there were
issues. Lots of them.

\"Our stuff got held up at the border for several months,\" says General
Manager Alex Tennant. \"We suspect that other companies in Mexico that
sell toys and sporting goods did not want competition so (Mexico) put up
all kinds of barriers.\"

One such barrier was the requirement that a special label be placed on
each item. \"So we had to pay to have the labels made and for someone to
put them on at the border. It was a completely useless exercise but we
had to do it,\" Mr. Tennant says.

Then Keith Hwang, now acting director of The Silicon Valley U.S. Export
Assistance Center in San Jose, got involved.

Mr. Hwang started making phone calls to Mexico on the company\'s behalf.
A lot of phone calls.

\"It took a couple months but he finally got them to agree to let our
products enter the country,\" Mr. Tennant says.

That experience made Aerobie a fan of the agency. \"They work above and
beyond the call,\" Mr. Tennant says. \"They really stick with it.\"

Aerobie\'s experience is not unique.

When LaserCard Corp. in Mountain View wanted to begin selling its
security cards abroad, the company contacted the center for market
research and to do some matchmaking.

\"They were our eyes, ears and legs on the ground,\" says Sales Manager
Patricia Kindree. \"Their research was very valuable. When you have a
small sales force, it\'s hard to figure out who you\'re really talking
to and to be able to verify claims people make.\"

Mr. Hwang\'s office set up a meeting with a prospect in Mexico and
helped the company explore other opportunities in that country.

\"I love Keith,\" Ms. Kindree says. \"It\'s hard not to speak in glowing
terms. He is always very responsive. I can go to Keith with anything.\"

Mr. Tennant echoes her sentiment.

\"I\'ve been doing tech sales for 30 years and to have this service
available to me as a U.S. citizen, for the amount of money I paid and
for what I got, is amazing.\"

The Silicon Valley U.S. Export Assistance Center, which is part of the
U.S. Commercial Service Network of the U.S. Department of Commerce, can
help businesses in a variety of ways, according to Mr. Hwang.

\"Our mission is to increase sales of U.S. products in overseas
markets,\" he says. The agency has been in business for 25 years, and
has had a office in Silicon Valley for more than 10.

\"The objective is to address a recognition that exports create quality,
high-paying jobs,\" Mr. Hwang says.

Its San Jose office has five staffers, a director and four trade
specialists who each work in specific industries. Because they are in
Silicon Valley, there is a high focus in such areas as IT and telecom,
but they also help in such areas as health care technology. They work
with numerous educational institutions to help them get more foreign
students and they provide assistance to consumer goods companies, as
well.

\"We try to cover all industries, so everybody is welcome. If they have
an exportable product, we will assist them,\" Mr. Hwang says.

The Silicon Valley office works with businesses located between San
Mateo and Gilroy and as far east as the Fremont-Milpitas area.

Statewide, there are 15 offices, which helped about 5,200 California
businesses in 2004. In that same period they helped California companies
make export sales with a total value of approximately \$400 million,
according to Mr. Hwang.

\"Our services range from introducing them to foreign distributors,
resellers and customers to providing research and other market
intelligence to assisting on foreign business and foreign import
regulations,\" Mr. Hwang says. \"Our goal is to provide effective
business solutions for U.S. exporters.\"

In some cases, a company may not need help finding a partner but would
like to know more about demand for their product in a particular market
or the process of how to actually do business in a given market.

\"They may want to know anything from where do they find the best
shipper to what documents they have to fill out and what U.S. export
regulations they have to adhere to. Others may want to know how they are
going to get paid,\" Mr. Hwang says. \"There are a wide range of
challenges that must be addressed to successfully do business in foreign
markets. We have a world-wide network of 1,700 professionals who can
help these companies successfully navigate these issues.\"

Generally, his office does not charge for most non-specific types of
services, such as providing information.

\"We have industry and market research available online free of charge
and we are also generally available to answer many questions related to
getting your product overseas. We can help people fill out the
Shipper\'s Export Declaration, which virtually all shipments must have,
free of charge,\" Mr. Hwang says.

For some services, the Export Assistance Center will charge a fee to
cover their expenses.

One fee-based service, which is also the most popular, is the Gold Key
Matchmaking Service, which connects a U.S. company with an oversees
reseller, distributor or customer.

The U.S. company indicates what they are looking for in terms of size of
the distributor or other criteria, and the particular target market they
are interested in.

\"We then go out and identify legitimate and qualified companies that
meet the criteria and arrange an itinerary or schedule of meetings by
which the U.S. company can meet and interview these prospective
partners,\" Mr. Hwang says.

Propel Software Corp., in San Jose, used the matchmaking service to find
customers in Latin America. According to Mr. Hwang, the company closed
about 10 contracts, worth a total of about \$500,000.

The fee for this service was \$700 - \$1,000 for each market.

\"When you call a company down there, they don\'t know you from Adam,\"
says Denny Mayer, Propel\'s director of sales for the Americas. \"But
when they get a call from (USEAC), there is an immediate response. You
get face-to-face meetings in no time.\"

Because the global market is constantly changing, USEAC adjusts to the
shifting needs of valley companies.

For example, five years ago, China was the 11th largest export market
for California companies. It is now number 4.

\"Our agency has recognized the increasing demand for U.S. products in
China as well as the growing interest of U.S. companies that want to do
business there,\" Mr. Hwang says.

They have introduced several new programs and initiatives designed to
help US companies enter and expand the Chinese market.

\"Our agency has added 14 American Trading Centers to the existing
network in China, which will provide opportunities in more markets in
that country,\" Mr. Hwang says.

They have also increased the number of Chinese trade shows that they
help U.S. companies participate in.

For more information, call 408-271-7300 or visit
www.buyusa.gov/siliconvalley.

Danek S. Kaus is a freelance writer based in Mountain View.