By Lori Szudarek, International Services Manager
Q: How can I increase my home + housewares exports? A: Attend the HECNA Global Forum – September 18 – 22!
Working with many of our IHA member companies, the International Department often receives this question…or a more specific version of the same question, with the goal of expanding into a specific global market. Exporting is a process with a longer sales cycle than most domestic sales and includes many steps that might not need to be considered for domestic shipments. Among the opportunities to learn directly from global retailers at the upcoming HECNA Global Forum, including: Walmart Puerto Rico, Ambiente Gourmet (Colombia), Future Group (India), attendees will have an invaluable opportunity to network with other home & housewares suppliers who have vast amounts of information on the markets in which they have already experienced success. On hand will be the heads of the IHA offices in the UK, Mexico and Germany, offering their expertise on their markets as well as speakers from a Peruvian distributor, a South America Rep Group, a Turkish retail specialist and a expert in third party logistics.
Past attendees to the HECNA Global Forum have touted the ample advice that they have received from other attendees on how to manage export sales in new markets. Attendees have been elated to walk away from attending the Global Forum with a large number contacts within the industry upon whom they can call throughout the year when in need of advice and assistance. The Global Forum offers attendees a platform designed to foster networking to find resolutions to global business questions in a non-competitive environment and a plethora of export-specific information through targeted presentations and breakout sessions.
Attendees have said:
The most beneficial part of attending the Global Forum was the interaction with the other attendees, hearing the issues and successes that they are seeing and solutions that have developed to help get over hurdles in these times.
-Chad O’Donnell, Grupo O’Donnell
Networking, while being outside the normal business environment to think about our business in a new way and to hear the challenges other are facing and solutions they have tried was an excellent component of my attendance a the Global Forum.
-Todd Larrabee, PIL Company
Don’t miss the opportunity to answer you own question on how to increase your home + housewares exports.
For full details on the programs offered at the Global Forum, September 18-22 in San Juan, Puerto Rico & Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, visit www.housewares.org/members/global-forum or contact Lori Szudarek at Lszudarek@housewares.org
