San Antonio, November 25, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute of Economic Development, announced today that it will complete its three-module Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Advisor and Director Certificate Training in Santiago Chile December 2-3. 2014. The program will help establish SBDCs throughout the country to support Chilean business owners and entrepreneurs.

SBDCs, established throughout the US by the federal government in partnership with state governments and universities and colleges, assist entrepreneurs and business owners in establishing and growing their businesses through a free and confidential suite of advising services. Services include, but not limited to, feasibility studies, business strategy, financial planning, marketing, production and professional networking. The Centers support new and existing businesses.

The goal of the SBDC Counselor and Director Certificate Training is to transfer the SBDC model methodology and train professionals on how to manage and operate an economic impact-producing SBDC. This training is part of the International Trade Center and Institute for Economic Development’s International SBDC Expansion Initiative that, with the support of the US Department of State, has been helping countries to develop US modeled SBDC networks in the Americas since 2003.

For Chile, module three is the culmination of the Certificate Training. At the conclusion of the event, participants will have worked through many of the aspects of the SBDC model, critical issues of SBDC leadership and day-to-day resources for running a successful SBDC. At the end of the training each participant will have developed a strategic plan for his or her future SBDC. In addition to the live training, this series has been live-streamed to business development professionals throughout Chile.

Among those in attendance at the live training will be Luis Céspedes, Minister of Economy, Chile; Bernardo Troncoso General Manager, SERCOTEC, Chile; Michael A. Hammer, US Ambassador for Chile; as well as representatives from PROCHILE, the Chilean Federal Export Agency.

UTSA Associate Vice President for Economic Development Robert McKinley, UTSA International Trade Center Director Cliff Paredes, and Senior International Business Advisor Monica Alcoz will conduct UTSA’s Advisor and Director Certificate Training.

“Chile has a lot of momentum to develop a fully functional SBDC network in the country,” said Cliff Paredes, Director of the International Trade Center. “Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has mandated an SBDC Initiative in the country, and has tasked the Ministry of the Economy and SERCOTEC [the Chilean Technical Cooperation Service] with the launching 33 centers in 2015 with a total of 50 by 2017 as a proactive step in building the local economy.”

At the conclusion of these final trainings event more than 150 attendees, most of whom will go on to be SBDC Directors or Advisors in Chile, will be awarded certificates by UTSA representatives.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).For more information on the project, visit http://www.sbdcglobal.com/index.php/us/international-sbdc.html

HELPING SBDC DIRECTORS DEVELOP INTERNATIONAL TRADE PROGRAMS

Director-TrainingSan Antonio, November 17, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute for Economic Development, announced today that through it’s SBDCGlobal program it has completed the third annual Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Director Trade Certification Series.

The SBDC Director Trade Certification Series is a 6 module, online training program aimed at existing SBDC Directors who are looking to expand their center’s capacity and enter the international trade advising market. UTSA International Trade Center Director Cliff Paredes, and Senior International Business Advisor Alberto Rodriguez-Baez teach the training program.

“We created this training based on the work we do as a successful International Trade Center and in examining our own operational and strategic plans,” said Cliff Paredes, Director of the International Trade Center who leads most of the training. “We found that there wasn’t a lot of existing training material for developing International Trade SBDCs, so we created this series to help other SBDCs. Not only do we get to help other SBDCs with their missions, each time we do the training we get a chance to review our own operations and find places to improve and grow.”

“I am very glad that I signed up for the Director Certification Series,” said George Atchley, Export Business Coach at the Idaho Small Business Development Center, who attended the 2013 series. “I found it to be a very comprehensive and understandable program and provided ‘real world’ value and guidance for a growing International Trade Center such as ours. I know that we will be using much of what was presented as we go forward.”

Since the series was launched in 2012, 155 participants at 112 SBDCs in 39 States have successfully completed the training. In the coming months, the UTSA International Trade Center will be offering their companion training for SBDC Advisors, the SBDC Trade Advisor Certification Series. For more information on SBDCGlobal visit http://www.SBDCGlobal.com.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTER TO LEAD STAKEHOLDER VISITS TO SAN ANTONIO

San Antonio, November 14, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute of Economic Development, announced today that it will host an international delegation of high-level government officials and SBDC directors and advisors from Colombia and Mexico on a visit to San Antonio to observe first-hand SBDC operations November 19-20, 2014.

SBDCs, established throughout the US by the federal government in partnership with universities and colleges, assist entrepreneurs and business owners in establishing and growing their businesses through a free and confidential suite of advising services. Services include, but are not limited to, feasibility studies, business strategy, financial planning, marketing, production and professional networking. The Centers support new and existing businesses.

Delegations from Colombia and Mexico will be in San Antonio to observe the operations of SBDCs and other centers at the UTSA Institute for Economic Development. They will learn first-hand how the US SBDC model works with presentations on the business advising services, training programs, SBDC management, client management, and other topics related to running a successful SBDC as well as how the federal government creates the legal and policy framework, structures, funds and conducts oversight of the SBDC network.

This visit is part of the International Trade Center and Institute for Economic Development’s SBDCGlobal program that, with the support of the US Department of State, has been helping countries to develop US modeled SBDC networks in the Americas since 2003.

“Mexico was the first country in which we began our work to expand the SBDC model beyond the US, and has been an amazing testing ground for our program,” said Julio Garcia de las Mestas, Senior International Business Advisor and lead on UTSA’s Mexico SBDC project. “Combining a visit from Mexico, a country with a long history with the SBDC model of business development, with a visit from Colombia, who came into the fold in the last couple of years, will allow both countries to gain from their diverse experiences.”

Since UTSA began working with Mexico to adapt the SBDC model, Mexican institutions of higher education have created 118 centers, formed the Mexican Association of SBDCs (AMCDPE), and have had over 1,300 SBDC counselors and directors trained through continued engagement with UTSA. The AMCDPE has hit a milestone this year of attaining federal funding through the Mexican Small Business Agency (INADEM) in the form of a contract to create 5 new pilot centers. Delegates from the AMCDPE will participate in the visit.

UTSA began working with Colombia in 2013 and has since completed training in 4 different cities resulting in 2 currently operating SBDCs and upward of 14 in the development phase. Future trainings for Colombia are in the planning stage.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

For more information on the project, visit http://www.sbdcglobal.com/index.php/us/international-sbdc.html.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTER DEMONSTRATES UTSA’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT WORK

prochile-visitSan Antonio, November 12, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute of Economic Development, hosted a delegation of officials from ProChile, the export promotion arm of the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on a visit San Antonio to observe first-hand SBDC operations November 3-4, 2014.

SBDCs, established throughout the US by the federal government in partnership with universities and colleges, assist entrepreneurs and business owners in establishing and growing their businesses through a free and confidential suite of advising services. Services include, but are not limited to, feasibility studies, business strategy, financial planning, marketing, production and professional networking. The Centers support new and existing businesses.

Ignacio Fernández, Assistant Director, and Cynthia Carrasco, Chief of Operations, from ProChile came to San Antonio to observe the operations of SBDCs and other centers at the UTSA Institute for Economic Development. Robert McKinley, UTSA Associate VP for Economic Development, Cliff Paredes, Director and Monica Alcoz, Senior International Business Advisor for the International Trade Center led the visit. The ProChile visitors learned first-hand how the US SBDC model works through presentations on the business advising services, training programs, SBDC management, client management, and other topics related to running a successful SBDC. Additionally presentationas were made on how the federal government creates the legal and policy framework, structures, funds and conducts oversight of the SBDC network. There was special attention in this visit given to topics of international trade and export.

This visit is part of the International Trade Center and Institute for Economic Development’s SBDCGlobal program that, with the support of the US Department of State, has been helping countries to develop US modeled SBDC networks in the Americas since 2003.

“Chile is currently engaged in our SBDC Counselor and Director Certificate Training,” said Cliff Paredes, Director of the International Trade Center. “Through this visit, ProChile has been able to see a more detailed picture of the potential for SBDCs to promote national export success as well as how to tie international trade and domestic business assistance together to create a more powerful economic engine for growth.”

Photos from the visit can be found on the International Trade Center Flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/photos/texastrade/sets/72157648726195870/.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

For more information on the project, visit http://www.sbdcglobal.com/index.php/us/international-sbdc.html

UTSA TO HELP TRAIN SBDC NETWORKS ON REPLICATING THE TEXAS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS ACCELERATOR (TIBA) PROGRAM

San Antonio, November 10, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute of Economic Development, announced today that Jaime Martinez of it’s Texas International Business Accelerator (TIBA) will provide training on running a TIBA style foreign direct investment SBDC program to help foreign small and medium-sized companies who are looking to export their products to the US and/or establish a company in Texas. This invitation only event for SBDC professionals will be November 17–18, 2014 in Miami, Florida.

The two-day event will cover topics that will help the SBDC in Miami, Florida to start a foreign direct investment (FDI) program based on the success of the TIBA program in San Antonio. Over the course of the training event, Jaime Martinez will cover critical services for an FDI program, how to track and measure program success, presentation of client case studies and resources, client intake and management, as well as staff and internal organization, and creating external partners for shared success.

“It’s a pleasure to share the methods for success that we have developed for the TIBA program,” said Jaime Martinez, Senior TIBA International Business Advisor. “At the International Trade Center, annual results from foreign direct investment have skyrocketed our ability to create jobs and help businesses secure finances for their ventures.”

The TIBA program was founded in 2011 to address a growing demand for advising services for foreign entrepreneurs seeking to expand into the US. It is UTSA’s only Foreign Direct Investment Program.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

For more about the International Trade Center, visit (https://texastrade.org, for more about TIBA visit: https://texastrade.org/tiba.

HELPING FOREIGN BUSINESSES INVEST IN TEXAS
InvirtiendoSan Antonio, October 24, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute of Economic Development, announced today that through it’s Texas International Business Accelerator (TIBA) it is partnering with the US Commercial Service, Cacheaux, Cavazos & Newton LLP, Foster Quan, LLP, and the Almanza Business Group to hold Invirtiendo en Texas, a full-day foreign direct investment seminar at the UTSA Downtown Campus on November 14, 2014. The event will be presented in Spanish.

TIBA first organized Invirtiendo en Texas in 2012. Since then it has grown to include more topics and partners. The event takes place 2-3 times per year in both San Antonio and Austin, as part of TIBA’s foreign direct investment program.

The training will cover business and legal topics that are of particular interest to foreign entrepreneurs seeking to put their investment capital to work to expand, invest or create a business in Texas. Morning presentations will cover how to use the services of the US Commercial Service, how to select a US business structure for investment projects, details on how to start a business in the US, intricacies of the US professional visa programs, and finally US Taxes. The afternoon will concentrate on questions from attendees and one-on-one consultations between attendees and presenters.

“Invirtiendo en Texas has been a very successful training program for us and we are pleased to be able to continue to evolve it,” said Jaime Martinez, Senior TIBA International Business Advisor. “Through this training we have seen first hand just how much interest there is in investing capital into state of Texas.”

The event will be held in the second floor training room (#2.316) of the Durango Building on the UTSA Downtown Campus Hotel at 501 W. Cesar E. Chavez Blvd, San Antonio, TX, 78207. The registration fee is $35.00, and the public is encouraged to attend. For more information on the event, or to register, visit: https://texastrade.org/invirtiendo-en-texas.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

San Antonio, October 23, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute for Economic Development, announced today that Center Assistant Director Doug Smith will speak at an exporting conference in Guam.

The event, 2014 Women in Business Conference: “Made Local. Go Global,” has been organized by the Guam SBDC. The event will be a primer for local companies who are looking to expand their reach into new international markets.

“Guam is in a great position to take advantage of exporting to regional markets such as Japan, Hong Kong and China,” said Doug Smith, International Trade Center Assistant Director. “We are proud to be able to participate in this event; it’s a great way to build relationships with other SBDCs.”

The event will be held October 24, 2014 at the Westin Resort Guam in Tumon, GU.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

For more about the International Trade Center, visit https://texastrade.org, and for more information on the Women in Business Conference, visit the event page at http://pisbdcn.ecenterdirect.com/ConferenceDetail.action?ID=3319.

San Antonio, October 20, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute of Economic Development, announced today that it will complete its four-module Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Advisor and Director Certificate Training in the cities of Medellin and Barranquilla, Colombia. The program will help establish SBDCs throughout the country to support business owners and entrepreneurs in Colombia.

The economy of Colombia is the third largest in Central and South America and is poised to be a leading trade partner with the US since the US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement went into effect in May of 2012 which has eliminated tariffs and other barriers to bilateral trade. Both Medellin and Barranquilla are top Colombian industrial cities and have strong cultures of entrepreneurship cultures, which will benefit their ability to adopt the US SBDC model.

SBDCs, established throughout the U.S. by the federal government in partnership with state governments and universities and colleges, assist entrepreneurs and business owners in establishing and growing their businesses through free and confidential advising services. Services include, but are not limited to, feasibility studies, business strategy, financial planning, marketing, production and professional networking. The centers support new and existing businesses.

The goal of the SBDC Advisor and Director Certificate Training is to transfer the SBDC model methodology and train professionals on how to manage and operate an economic impact-producing SBDC and to connect and promote trade between small businesses in both countries and with the rest of the Americas and the Caribbean. This training is part of the International Trade Center and Institute for Economic Development’s International SBDC Global Initiative that since 2003, with the support of the U.S. government, has been helping countries develop U.S.-modeled SBDC networks in the Americas.

UTSA International Trade Center Director Cliff Paredes and International Business Advisor Barbara Mooney will conduct UTSA’s Advisor and Director Certificate Training in Medellin October 23-24; Senior International Business Advisor Julio Garcia de las Mestas and Barbara Mooney will conduct the training in Barranquilla, October 28-29.

“Once we complete the SBDC training in Medellin and Barranquilla, we will have performed this training in four different Colombian cities,” said Cliff Paredes, Director of the UTSA International Trade Center who leads UTSA’s program that has developed and administers this training. “Helping Colombia to build the small and medium-sized business sector will have enormous benefits for US companies who do business internationally and are looking for new markets. The economy of Colombia is growing and their capacity for importing and exporting is growing too.”

At the conclusion of these final trainings event more than 200 attendees, most of whom will go on to be SBDC Directors or Advisors in Colombia, will be awarded certificates by UTSA representatives.

This project is part of the South America Partnership Program, a collaborative partnership of the Higher Education for Development (HED), and UTSA, which was developed to create SBDC networks in South America, and connect them to that of the U.S., Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. The project is funded by the U.S. Department of State Pathways for Prosperity initiative.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

For more information on the project, visit http://www.sbdcglobal.com/index.php/us/international-sbdc.html.

Celebrate 35 years of the Institute for Economic Development

financingSan Antonio, October 17, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute for Economic Development, announced today that it is partnering with the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Export-Import Bank of the US (Ex-Im), and the US Department of Commerce to hold Financing your Export Venture, a half-day export finance seminar at the UTSA Downtown Campus on November 4, 2014, as part of the UTSA Institute for Economic Development’s weeklong 35th anniversary celebration.

The half-day training is bringing together experts on export finance from the US SBA, the Ex-Im Bank, the US Commercial Service, and the International Trade Center to deliver presentations on services available to finance export ventures, as well as tools that businesses can use to boost their ability to finance various export projects.

“We are pleased to offer Financing your Export Venture in support of the UTSA Institute for Economic Development’s 35th anniversary,” said Cliff Paredes, International Trade Center Director. “This event will be an important step for area businesses that are considering exporting but don’t know how to deal with financing.”

The event will be held in the second floor training room (#2.316) of the Durango Building on the UTSA Downtown Campus at 501 W. Cesar E. Chavez Blvd, San Antonio, TX, 78207. There is no fee for attendance, and the public is encouraged to attend. For more information on the event, or to register, visit: https://texastrade.org/training/financing-your-export-venture/.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

For more information on the project, visit http://www.sbdcglobal.com/index.php/us/international-sbdc.html.

San Antonio, October 07, 2014 – The International Trade Center, an SBDC at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Institute of Economic Development, announced today that U.S. Trade Representative, Ambassador Michael Froman visited San Antonio yesterday to see first-hand the city’s export-related economic development efforts and to meet with Concord Supply, an International Trade Center client who successful exports US made products.

Ambassador Froman, the 11th US Trade Representative, is President Obama’s principal advisor, negotiator, and spokesperson on international trade and investment issues. He leads the Office of the United States Trade Representative in its work to open global markets for U.S. goods and services, enforce America’s rights in the global trading system, and foster development through trade.

Concord Supply is a manufacturer of packaging material, special laminations, and extrusions. They came to the International Trade Center in 2013 and received international market research, trade advising and international business development training assistance from Senior International Business Advisor Alberto Rodriguez-Baez.

View photos from the visit on our Flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/photos/texastrade/sets/72157648483196681/.

The International Trade Center at UTSA is one of the largest and most successful trade assistance organizations in Texas. It helps companies become globally competitive through technical trade consulting, customized market research and innovative training programs. The center is a specialty SBDC program in the South-West Texas Border SBDC Network. Follow them on Twitter (@TexasTrade) and like them on Facebook (Facebook.com/texastrade).

For more information on the project, visit http://www.sbdcglobal.com/index.php/us/international-sbdc.html