May 13th, 2008
I was at an event last week where a representative of the German government was asked to choose the best of the presidential hopefuls from a German-US relations perspective. Needless to say, he refused to do so, pointing out instead some concerns he had with each of the candidates. He rightfully pointed out that some of the Democratic hopefuls’ statements on trade have been worrying in the least.
Whatever his faults, McCain has been consistently pro-trade, and even his shift to the right doesn’t appear to have altered that stance much. He’s certainly added some of the “tough scrutiny” language conservatives like to see, but he also still open to expanding NAFTA and negotiating even more trade pacts internationally.
Now, I personally believe that the Democratic statements are just so much political rhetoric, and that the US will continue in its role as an advocate for free trade (if not always with the consistency one might like to see) with either side as president. That said, beating on NAFTA at a time of economic distress brings the issue to the public’s attention, and could lead to public pressure to become more protectionist and withdrawn. I don’t think so, but it’s still a sobering thought for those of who rely on trade for a living.
What do you think? Would either of the Democratic candidates pose a real threat to free trade?
Tags: candidate, Clinton, Democrat, mccain, NAFTA, Obama, tradeShare This
By Chris -- 0 comments
May 12th, 2008
Periodically, the business channel here at b5 has a challenge, and this one is about taking risks. Since it’s world trade month, I thought mine should have something to do with, not surprisingly, trade.
The risk I took was to start a law firm with the aim of assisting foreign (mostly German) companies set up in the US, more specifically in the Philadelphia area. Before, during, and after law school I was told that you couldn’t be an international lawyer in Philadelphia, that you had to go to New York or Washington. A combination of stubbornness and home-town pride (Go Flyers, sigh) made me think otherwise.
Then a funny thing happened - I kept bumping into lawyers who would never have called themselves “international,” but who had transactions all over the world. There was, in fact, a steady stream of trade between Philadelphia and the world, and fortunately for us we’ve been able to capture some of the legal business related to that trade. The same is true about cities and towns across the US (and the world). After all, who’d have thought that Walldorf, Germany or Redmond, Washington, USA would spawn two of the most international companies in history (to say nothing of an expensive hotel)?
The moral of the story is that trade is everywhere, and that you can probably be successful at it if you’ve got a good product and some patience.
image courtesy of Wikipedia, public domain
Tags: business, Flyers, international, law, philadelphia, riskShare This
By Chris -- 0 comments
May 10th, 2008
I went to a trade show this week in Stuttgart. The show itself was fine - I got some information, met some people, the typical things you do at a trade show.
But I couldn’t get anything decent to eat. The choices were hamburger patty (pork and beef mixed), sausage, french fries and ham sandwiches. I took hamburger and fries (for 12 Euros!) and spent the rest of the day burping.
As I sat in the bistro eating, I observed 2 business men from Iran walk in, look at the menu board and walk right back out. Every menu item had pork in it. The two guys from Malaysia ended up ordering just french fries and cola.
I asked the Malaysians if they were going to visit other places in Germany. No, they had come only for the trade show. They had stayed in the hotel next door, had visited the show all three days and were flying back to KL that night.
I hope they found more to eat than just french fries.
Now, I don’t expect fast food to be fine cuisine, but you need to offer people a few choices, especially at international trade shows. You don’t need to be an expert in intercultural relationships to realize that people in different countries have different diets.
Image from src.senate.gov
Tags: fast food, Stuttgart, trade showShare This
By Jean Mercedes -- 0 comments
May 9th, 2008
Chris pointed out last week that May is World Trade Month.
As an American ex-pat in Germany, I have schlepped so many things back and forth between two continents that it sometimes feels like I am running my own private import/export business. Sure, I take advantage of exchange rates wherever I can (why buy an iPod for 129 Euros when you can get it for 129 USD?) but there are also a lot of products I like which are only available in one market. Here are some of my current faves:
SmartWool Socks
Mostly available at US camping stores, these are the best/most comfortable socks. Once you put them on, you never want to take them off. Until they start showing up in Munich, I will continue to buy in the US and bring them over for friends in Europe. Or maybe I should open a shop in ebay and sell them myself?
Cheerios
Many American classics have long since arrived in European supermarkets: maple syrup, marshmallows, peanut butter, bagels, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, all types of Kellogg’s cereals. I can even buy Betty Crocker cake mix. But Cheerios didn’t make the cut. Why did a product manager decide to sell Corn Flakes in Europe but not Cheerios? Both are equally bland. Is flaky better than round? Care to join me in a campaign to take Cheerios global?
Scotch tape
It’s sad but true: German engineers cannot come up with a decent tape. They do all right with masking tape and packing tape, but the “scotch tape” sold in Europe has been driving me crazy for 20 years. Let’s all call up 3M and beg them to send tape.
Migraine and cold medicines
Stay healthy with modern chemistry. Pain and cold pills are stronger in the US. Plus they are available in “family packs” of 500 or 1000 pills and can be purchased over the counter. Tylenol, Claritin and company just are not sold here. Maybe the European drug regulations are stricter than in the US?
What US products do you miss when you are abroad?
Next time I’ll look at German products I often bring to the US.
Image from ams.usda.gov
Tags: 3M, Cheerios, import/export, SmartWool SocksShare This
By Jean Mercedes -- 5 comments
May 8th, 2008
There are more people in the world who speak English as a second langauge than there are native speakers. (Refer to my previous post.)
Jarkko Laine from Finland has put together some tips for those non-native English speakers who are looking to increase their language skills. As someone who went through this process to improve my German skills, I must say that Jarkko hit it right on the nose. His advice is sound and he includes a number of good links to resources.
Check it out here. Ten Practical Tips for Writing in English.
Even native speakers can benefit.
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By Jean Mercedes -- 2 comments
May 7th, 2008
As most of you probably know, the EU recently moved to permit cell phone use on flights within European airspace. This post from FlyAwayCafe discusses a bill recently introduced in Congress which would ensure that the US does not follow suit.
I can only applaud this - those of us who travel in trains are already bombarded with the incessant chatter of the woman who simply can’t resist telling Aunt Bertha about the fungus growing underneath her toenail, the aggressive salesman telling how he pawned off a mediocre product on an unsuspecting customer, or even the attorney who relentlessly waives attorney-client privilege by providing legal advice to a client on a crowded train. Unfortunately, the rest of us are along for the ride, whether we want to be or not, and the idea of an eight-hour flight next to just such a chatterbox is enough for me to consider going postal on someone.
What do you think?
image courtesy Wikimedia, copyright Chris McKenna, Creative Commons/ShareAlike
Tags: air travel, airplane, cell phone, handy, mobile phoneShare This
By Chris -- 2 comments
May 6th, 2008
My mother is one of those people who likes to chat on airplanes. I am not, so those of you who sit down next to me on a long-haul flight are likely to be disappointed.
In any event, my mother has spoken with all sorts of people on airplanes, from Joey Bishop to the manager of a then-unknown Australian band named INXS. One of her most interesting chats, though, was with an exporter of sand. More peculiar, the gentleman in question was exporting sand to Saudi Arabia. It would seem to me that there’s more than enough sand in Saudi Arabia to go around, but according to this account the sand is actually too fine to make strong concrete, so this exporter’s business was exporting coarse US sand to mix with the native sand in large construction projects.
The story may well be apocryphal, but the point to be taken from it is still a good one. Never assume that a foreign market doesn’t need your product or service - people can and do export beer to Germany, potatoes to Poland, and Big Macs to more countries than I care to count. In fact, one of my clients exports pretzels to Germany, which would seem like a sure loser, but the fact is that US pretzel products have developed very differently than those in Germany since commercial US pretzel baking began in 1861.
If you think your product isn’t export-worthy, take a second look at what differentiates it from the rest and you may well find a foreign market for it after all.
Tags: beer, export, Germany, inxs, Poland, Potatoes, pretzels, sand, saudi arabiaShare This
By Chris -- 0 comments
May 4th, 2008
Since May is World Trade Month in the US, I’ll spend much of the month posting on - you guessed it - trade. While many posts will be from the US point of view, many of the resources can (and should) be adapted for exporters from other countries.
It is common knowledge that US companies lag woefully in exports as compared to their European and Asian counterparts. Part of this has to do with the sheer size of the US market and the federal system, which means laws differ from state to state. More on that some other day, but the long and short of it is that companies need to wrap their arms around “exporting” to other states before they are ready to tackle another country. Still, there’s certainly room for more exporting, and the US government has a number of resources to help companies who want to export.
The starting point is the US government’s main export page. There’s a basic guide to exporting (much of which is helpful to non-US companies as well), a readiness quiz, as well as a host of links to the various US government programs intended to assist US exporters. Once you’ve decided it’s time to start exporting, you can develop an export plan using the model outline and other website resources.
Check it out, and if you know of other good resources let us know.
Tags: export, international, tradeShare This
By Chris -- 2 comments
May 3rd, 2008
This interesting article from the Financial Times discusses how native speakers of English are increasingly losing control of their own language. I have noticed over time that German usage of many English business terms has begun to vary from what I would consider standard English usage, and is stripped of the expressions which make native language so colorful. The result? We may not actually understand the “common” language of business the way we think we do, and non-native speakers may end up expressing themselves more clearly in the end.
Tags: English, Financial-Times, languageShare This
By Chris -- 0 comments
May 1st, 2008
I’m not even a frequent flyer (at least not in the true sense of the word) and I absolutely hate the whole plastic-baggy thing we’ve got going on. Now a company called travelon has come up with what sounds like a great solution - little biodegradable sheets which can be reconstituted into shampoo, conditioner, and shaving cream. It may not satisfy those with more finicky hair care needs than mine, but I’m looking forward to trying them. After all, why carry around all of that water when you don’t have to?
In the meantime, if you’ve tried them let us know how they are.
Tags: conditioner, liquids, security, shampoo, TravelShare This
By Chris -- 0 comments
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