Is Exporting Right For Your Company?

According the Brookings Rockefeller Project, part of the Brookings Institute, 87% of future market growth in the world is expected to occur outside of the United States.

Abdo, Eick & Meyers recently hosted the Edina Emerald Export Initiative conference where Ed Dieter, the Deputy Director for the Minnesota Trade Office started the meeting by sharing some additional statistics that point out the importance of Minnesota company’s ability to recognize export opportunities.

• 95% of the world’s population and 75% of the purchasing power is outside of the United States, and rapidly growing.
• The United States exports 10% of its GDP, the lowest of the top 10 exporting countries in the world.

So how would you determine if exporting is for your company? To begin with, you don’t need to be big to export. In 2010, 38% of exporters had less than or equal to 19 employees. In 2011, Minnesota companies exported $38B in goods and services with manufacturing leading the way with 53% of those exports, followed by services with 29% and agriculture with 18%. The other key is determining if you have an exportable product or service by asking yourself if it is exclusively for domestic use.

If a company does determine they are interested in starting or expanding your current exporting volume, the most important thing to have is a detailed plan. It was clear from the presenters, including representatives from Barr Engineering, Starkey Laboratories and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, that this plan should include internal resources and external partners (accountants, bankers, attorneys), as well as logistical experts that will assist in the development and implementation of the plan. The good news is that there are a tremendous amount of available resources to assist any company through this process in key areas such as market prospecting, export regulations, petting paid and the role of the freight forwarder. Resources include the Minnesota Trade Office, MN DEED, Import-Export Bank of the United States and many others.