The IOE is urging members to maximise the export opportunities offered by our partner the International Festival for Business 2016 (IFB2016) by signing up for the free-to join International Festival for Business Club.
The club is a key feature of IFB2016 – the world’s biggest business festival – which takes place across June 13th – July 1st at the Exhibition Centre Liverpool and comprises three weeks of business events, speakers, seminars and product showcases for exporters and those with an ambition to trade overseas.
The club’s wealth of benefits include access to the ‘Meet Your Future Deal’ programme – a digital matching service that offers thousands of introductions to potential buyers, partners, investors and suppliers – along with an exciting range of international networking, investment and real-time export opportunities.
Anyone interested is advised to register for the Business Club as soon as possible, providing a few key pieces of information to ensure they find qualified appointments with prospective buyers that will be organised on their behalf. It’s a brilliant way of maximising a terrific opportunity to win new business for SMEs both in England and further afield.
Around 6,000 face-to-face appointments are expected to be made through the club over the three weeks of the festival, which is delivered in partnership with UK Trade & Investment and the GREAT Britain Campaign, and supported by the UK Government.
The festival will also give businesses access to free advice from leading industry experts through the Meet Your Specialist Advisor programme. Covering each step of the export and business growth journeys, delegates will be paired with the advisors best suited to their needs through the digital matching service.
Specialist advice areas range from international market research to export tax, the tender process – including the latest export opportunities – to logistics, finance and legal issues. Advisors will represent organisations including UK Trade & Investment, Exporting is GREAT, British Library & Intellectual Property Centre and London Stock Exchange.
Festival Director Ian McCarthy said: “The club will create an easy-to-access route for businesses looking to engage with the festival. Beyond that, we’ve created a virtual shop window, where businesses that want to do deals can showcase their products and services and connect with potential buyers, partners, investors and suppliers from all over the world in a few easy steps.
“It offers unbeatable opportunities for ambitious SMEs who may lack an international network but are looking to take their companies to the next level and do deals on a global scale.”
The Institute and IFB2016 co-sponsored the recent, highly successful inaugural government-backed Open to Export Action Plan Competition, with HSBC, while our director general, Lesley Batchelor OBE, will be one of the judges at the first UK National Awards for Export Excellence, which will be held on the 15th June.
Lesley said: “The awards are a wonderful platform to showcase the achievements of the businesses that are achieving success in international trade. They reinforce how vital it is for product and service based businesses across the UK to seize the opportunity to include exporting in their strategic planning and growth activity.
“The news agenda will continue to put international relations and trade under intense scrutiny over the next few months and it is vital that we all champion, encourage and support export business to secure our economic security.”
You can read more here: www.ifb2016.com
Visit the IOE website for more information about our training, qualifications and business membership, or contact us if you have any questions.