Past Blogs

View our previous blog posts.

• 2023 SFFA
  June 27th marks the conclusion of another great show held by the Specialty Food Association (SFA). This year’s Summer Fancy Food Show was held for three days on the 25th, 26th, and 27th of June at the Javits Center in Manhattan, New York. Since 2012, the World Trade Center of Harrisburg has been attending and…
• 2023 Summer Fancy Food Show
  June 27th marks the conclusion of another great show held by the Specialty Food Association (SFA). This year’s Summer Fancy Food Show was held for three days on the 25th, 26th, and 27th of June at the Javits Center in Manhattan, New York. Since 2012, the World Trade Center of Harrisburg has been attending and…
• Bringing the World to PA 2022
  The World Trade Center Harrisburg in conjunction with the Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development hosted Bringing the World to PA 2022 on September 14 at the National Civil War Museum in Harrisburg PA.  Everyone was excited to be meeting in person for the first time in several years due to the Covid pandemic. …
• A Guide to the Global Help Desk
• Announcing PA’s New Taiwan Trade Office
  Pennsylvania’s Office of International Business Development is pleased to announce that Anemone Ventures is the Commonwealth’s new Authorized Trade & Investment Representative in Taiwan. PA based companies can access the services of the Taiwan trade office by contacting their Regional Export Network Office – WTC Harrisburg is the regional partner for southcentral PA based firms.  Examples of services include:  Additional PA trade offices…
• FTZ 147: A Supply Chain Success Story
  Thirty-five years ago, The Reading Chamber of Commerce filed an application with the US Foreign-Trade Zones Board resulting in the creation of Foreign-Trade Zone 147 (FTZ 147), the 147th such zone established in the US.  For perspective, as of the end of 2020, there were 298 FTZ’s in and around the various U.S. Customs Ports…
• Risk of Global Non-Compliance
  By guest blogger Liz Parent, Director of Sales and Marketing, Testing Partners  Many manufacturers choose not to obtain required wireless or safety certifications for their devices going into global markets for various reasons. While those reasons might seem valid, and are definitely based on value, the risks of noncompliance can far outweigh the few thousand…
• Automated Lead Nurturing Abroad: 3 Key Elements You Have to Get Right
  By Guest Blogger Gary Peterson, Wavelength Marketing Automated lead nurturing is a form of marketing that uses a variety of communication tools to attract prospects with high-value content and then capture and nurture leads over a period of time. While automated lead nurturing abroad is often comprised of many or all of the same elements you would…
• Trends in World Exports from Southcentral PA
  Posted by Sara Rilatt, Intern Edited 8/6/2019. This graph provides an overview of Southcentral Pennsylvania’s export activity to different regions of the world. NAFTA countries consistently retain the highest share of exports from the Southcentral region, ending just below 45% in 2017. Africa also remains steady at a share of under 5% for the last…
• Event Recap: 20th Annual International Trade Conference
  posted by Arop Monywiir This year WTC Harrisburg’s 20th International Trade Conference was held at the Eden Resort in  Lancaster, PA. The conference started with a morning panel discussion regarding the United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement (USMCA) and featured Alicia Kerber Palma, Consul General of Mexico in Philadelphia, Khawar Nasim, Deputy Consul General of Canada in New York,…
• Translation for Global Trade: How to Choose a Language Partner
  by WTC Guest Blogger Myriam Siftar, President and CEO of MTM LinguaSoft   A relationship with a translation and localization partner is an important ingredient for a successful export program. As your global footprint grows, customers will expect content in their own language. In addition to translation for supporting sales and marketing, you may need packaging…
• Retaliatory Tariff Resources from the US Department of Commerce
  posted by Tina Weyant Below is a listing of useful website links from the US Department of Commerce regarding foreign retaliatory actions to the U.S. Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs as well as China’s responses to U.S. Section 301 tariffs. General Information about Foreign Tariff Retaliations: Details regarding additional duty rates and their effective…
• Bringing the World to PA 2018
  Posted by Katrina Chan The World Trade Center Harrisburg  in conjunction with the Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development hosted the 19th annual Bringing the World to PA. Participants showed up as early as 8:30AM on Thursday, September 13, 2018 for their appointments with the Trade Representatives. Appointments with PA’s Trade Offices: PA’s authorized…
• 2018 Impact of Trade Key Findings
  Posted by Brynne Godfrey, Intern During my summer Statistical Analysis and Economic Impact internship with the World Trade Center Harrisburg, I was in charge of compiling the Impact of Trade: An Analysis of Goods and Services Exported 2016 report. Export data by Pennsylvania county was provided by the Brookings institution in the form of nearly 123,000…
• Event Recap: 19th Annual International Trade Conference
  posted by Katrina Chan This year marks the WTC Harrisburg’s 19th Annual International Trade Conference, held at Reading, PA. The conference theme was “Celebrating Export Excellence in Berks County!”, to recognize and showcase successful local exporters from across the region. Every year, the WTC Harrisburg holds the International Trade Conference, because we recognize the importance…
• Netherlands Day in Harrisburg
  posted by Katrina Chan Left to right: Allan Kline, President of Klinge Corporation and WTC Board Member, Consul General Dolph Hogewoning and Amabassador Henne Schuwer The World Trade Center Harrisburg and Stevens & Lee/Griffin International, LLC collaborated in organizing a morning roundtable to host Ambassador Henne Schuwer, Consul General Dolph Hogewoning and his delegation from the…
• What You Need to Know About the New Steel and Aluminum Tariffs
  posted by Tina Weyant Yesterday, President Trump signed a Presidential Proclamation regarding the imports of steel, and a second Proclamation regarding the imports of aluminum.   A 25% additional duty on steel and a 10% additional duty on aluminum products will become effective on March 23, 2018 for all countries, except Mexico and Canada for now….
• Recap: 4th Annual State of the Ports Address
  posted by Katrina Chan WTC Harrisburg successfully hosted its Annual State of the Ports Address on 22 February at the Sheraton Harrisburg-Hershey Hotel.  The State of the Ports Address was the perfect opportunity for companies who wanted to expand internationally to get to know their local port authorities and to network with different business who…
• 2017 Recap: Annual Holiday Luncheon and Reception
  Posted by Katrina Chan Annual 21st Holiday Luncheon The World Trade Center Harrisburg team hosted the annual holiday luncheon on December 1st at the Out Door Country Club, York, PA for board members, members and sponsors. The luncheon started with an opening reception and light refreshments were served. Tina Weyant presented the opening speech, highlighting…
• Bringing the World to PA 2017
  Posted by Katrina Chan, Intern This past week, The World Trade Center Harrisburg  in conjunction with the Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development hosted the 18th annual Bringing the World to PA . The event kicked-off at 7:30AM on Thursday, September 14, 2017 with registration which was followed by breakfast. Appointments with PA’s Trade…
• International Trade Conference 2017 Recap
  Posted by Emilie Smetak, Intern This year marked our 18th annual trade conference, All Bets Are Off: Navigating a Changing Global Environment! The conference was hosted on May 25th in York, and speakers included government officials, finance advisors, business leaders and policy directors. Recaps of the presentations are provided below. We hope to see you…
• The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment
  Posted by Jillian McCue, Intern Have you ever wondered how much Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has been invested in the Southcentral PA region? In 2016, our region had 898 foreign owned companies operating in the area who employed 71,519 employees! We were able to pull together regional level as well as county level data for…
• Southcentral PA’s 2015 MSA Report
  Posted by Brittany Fleisher, Intern Each year following the International Trade Administrations’ release of their “Metropolitan Export Series” data, we summarize the information for our region. The southcentral region of Pennsylvania encompasses seven Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs). These seven MSAs grew their exports by $2.3 billion since 2010, reaching a total of $8.8 billion in…
• 17th annual Bringing the World to PA!
  posted by Hannah Copenheaver Governor Tom Wolf with Pennsylvania’s Authorized Trade Representatives In conjunction with the Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development, we hosted the 17th annual Bringing the World to PA on Monday, September 19, 2016. Meetings with PA’s Trade Offices: The event brought 14 of PA’s authorized trade representatives to meet one…
• A Look at the Trans-Pacific Partnership
  Posted by Ian McGinnis, Intern The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a free trade agreement among the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim countries. Generally speaking, the agreement lowers tariffs and reduces barriers to trade among all countries involved. The trade agreement is one of the largest ever, consisting of 40% of the global GDP and…
• 5th Year for the Pennsylvania Pavilion at the Summer Fancy Food Show
  Posted by: Hannah Copenheaver The World Trade Center Harrisburg partnered for the 5th year with Pennsylvania’s Office of International Business Development in organizing the Pennsylvania Pavilion at the 62nd annual Summer Fancy Food Show. The show was held at the Javits Convention Center in New York City from June 26-28, 2016. The Fancy Food Show is…
• Hannah Joins Core PA on the Mining, Oil & Gas Tour
  Posted by: Hannah Copenheaver World Trade Center Harrisburg partner CORE PA Global hosted a tour for seven journalists to showcase Pennsylvania companies involved in the mining, oil and gas field from June 13 to 17, 2016. The tour took place in the western part of the state, beginning in Berlin and ending in New Castle. Hannah…
• Customs Valuation Issues for Imports into China
  by WTC Guest Blogger Ted Murphy, Partner, Baker & McKenzie LLP China recently amended its customs declaration requirements to capture new information that may make it easier for the General Administration of Customs to target potential customs valuation issues.  Specifically, importers are now required to identify whether the buyer and the seller are related; whether that relationship influenced…
• Event Recap: International Trade Conference 2016
  Posted by: Hannah Copenheaver This year marked our 17th International Trade Conference! It was held on May 18, 2016 in Lancaster. If you missed it, you did miss another exciting and fun event, but here is a recap of what went on.  1. The morning “Mimosa Mingle” breakfast kicked off the conference and celebrated our…
• WTC Board Meeting in the New World Trade Center Building & Special Guest from WTCA
  Posted by: Hannah Copenheaver On May 11, 2016, we hosted our quarterly Board of Directors meeting at the “new” World Trade Center Harrisburg location. Even though it is still under construction, that didn’t stop us! We transformed the conference room area using a few folding tables and chairs and some nice tablecloths. This allowed us to “get…
• ABRIN Toy Fair Brings Latin American Economy To The Forefront
  By WTC Guest Blogger Jessica Toutsis, RoomMates Décor ABRIN, the largest event in Latin America for the toy industry, brings together the most important toy makers in Brazil and introduces new products that will impact sales for the upcoming year.  While the show provided a firsthand look at many new and exciting product lines, the…
• Cheers to 20 Years!: Tina’s 20 Year Work Anniversary
  By: Hannah Copenheaver This month marks Tina’s 20th year with World Trade Center! Tina was hired in May 1996 as the first full-time employee of the then-named Southcentral Pennsylvania International Network (SPIN), after several years of the organization operating on a volunteer-basis. Tina has served as the Executive Director since this time. (Click here for…
• International Trade Fair for our Children’s World
  By WTC Guest Blogger Jessica Toutsis, RoomMates Décor In the Eastern European toy industry, the Kids Russia Fair in Moscow is the aspirant fair everyone is flocking to. Also known as the “International Trade Fair for our Children’s World,” products including children’s toys, hobbies, baby, outdoor, playground and sports are all featured.  Having the reputation…
• Hannah Judges Enactus Competition
  By: Hannah Copenheaver I had an awesome opportunity to represent World Trade Center as a judge for the Enactus regional competition in Washington, DC on March 29. For those who are unfamiliar with the organization, Enactus is an international non profit that brings together students, colleges and businesses who are committed to using the power of…
• Doing Business in Eurasia
  By Hannah Copenheaver On March 22, we hosted a roundtable discussion with the Mid-Atlantic Russian Business Council/Mid-Atlantic Eurasia Business Council in Harrisburg that addressed emerging business opportunities in the greater Eurasian region.  A panel of experts discussed a variety of topics, ranging from legal, regulatory standards, and taxation, that influence the way Eurasian counties conduct…
• New York Toy Fair: A Must on The Trade Show Checklist
  By WTC Guest Blogger Jessica Toutsis, RoomMates Décor Last month thousands of vendors and buyers attended the New York Toy Fair to explore thousands of toys, games and youth entertainment products within a record-breaking 415,000 net square feet of exhibit space. Not familiar with the New York Toy Fair? Produced by the Toy Industry Association™,…
• The Numbers of Trade: Why Exporting Adds Up
  by: Hannah Copenheaver This year for MANTEC’s Business Growth Conference, Tina ran a breakout session called “The Numbers of Trade: Why Exporting Adds Up”. In case you missed it, here is the run down of what happened during the session and why, in fact, exporting does “add up”. THE “NUMBERS OF TRADE” GAME First, we…
• Nuremberg: An Interactive Booth Is Key
  By WTC Guest Blogger Jessica Toutsis, RoomMates Décor Tradeshows require months of preparation including booth design, scheduling appointments with key customers, transporting all product and materials to the show, plus setting up the booth at the show. It is worth it, especially when you attend the world’s biggest toy fair in Germany and arrive back…
• State of the Ports Address 2016
  Posted by Emily Johnson, Intern Last Thursday, we hosted our second annual State of the Ports Address. We had Dominic O’Brien from the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority and Marie Byers from the Harrisburg International Airport speak at the event. The Philadelphia Regional Port Authority (PRPA) is located in the fifth largest metropolitan area in the…
• Heimtex: Setting The Stage For The Year
  By WTC Guest Blogger Jessica Toutsis, RoomMates Décor The year is off to a busy start with many members exhibiting their products at popular industry trade shows. During mid-January, international manufacturers, retailers, and designers throughout the world came together at Heimtex, the biggest international trade show for the home and contract textiles in the world!…
• Despite Privacy Shield Agreement, Legal Uncertainty Remains for Businesses Transferring Personal Data between Europe and United States
  by WTC Guest Bloggers Louis Dejoie and Thomas Markey, McNees, Wallace & Nurick LLC On October 6, 2015, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) invalidated a Safe Harbor provision that allowed companies to transfer personal data from within the EU to the US, finding that the Safe Harbor failed to adequately protect EU…
• WTC’s 19th Annual Holiday Luncheon and Reception
  Posted by Hannah Copenheaver This year, we celebrated our 19th Holiday Luncheon and Reception at the Out Door Country Club in York, PA. Every year, we choose a different global location to learn more about how their culture celebrates holidays and exchanges gifts during these times.  This year, we decided to choose Albania. Why? Because…
• Meet Your Local Customs Official Roundtable
  Posted by Paige Diller, Intern At our recent World Trade Center round-table event, we had the opportunity to meet with Michelle Stover, Port Director, and Scott Merlo, Officer, from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Port of Harrisburg office.   They were able to share their mission as part of CBP’s Field Operations and some of their personal…
• Dealing with a Strong U.S. Dollar
  Posted by Paige Diller, Intern As the strength of the U.S. dollar is on the rise, a small group of representatives from local businesses sat down for a roundtable discussion to gain insight and share advice on how to manage the currency’s impact on exports and trade. Currency Strength and Exporting Impacts Explained. Though the…
• Hannah’s Trade Show Visits
  posted by Hannah Copenheaver Hannah has been busy this year! It just so happened that she was in the same city twice this year at the same time as our members, who were exhibiting at their respective industry trade shows. This led to the great opportunity for Hannah to see both members, in action, as they showcased…
• La Linea
  contributed by Ted Murphy, Partner, Baker & McKenzie LLP As you may have seen in the news recently, the President of Guatemala, Otto Pérez Molina has been forced to resigned and was jailed over his alleged role in a multi-million dollar customs fraud scheme.  This scheme, referred to as “La Línea”, involved payments of bribes…
• A Wonderful Experience at the Fancy Food Show!
  Posted by Hannah Copenheaver Hannah at the Fancy Food Show The World Trade Center Harrisburg partnered for the 4th year with Pennsylvania’s Office of International Business Development (World Trade PA) in organizing the Pennsylvania Pavilion at the 61st annual Summer Fancy Food Show. The show was held at the Javits Convention Center in New York City…
• Export Finance Programs
  Posted by Corby Myers, Intern Presentation Room Are you curious about the various export finance programs available to you in the state of Pennsylvania? On June 16, 2015, the World Trade Center hosted an Export Finance program. This event discussed the various export finance programs that are available to small businesses.  Presenters included: Export Import…
• New PA Transactions Act
  Contributed by Josh Cohen, Hartman Underhill & Brubaker, LLC Beginning July 1, 2015, Pennsylvania’s business laws will be on the leading edge of statutory flexibility for business transactions.  For existing or new PA-based businesses with international operations, this presents a significant opportunity to adjust their legal structure to take advantage of tax rules, governance structures, ownership…
• 15th Annual International Trade Conference Event Recap
  Posted by Hannah Copenheaver  On May 28, 2015, we hosted our 15th Annual International Trade Conference at the Wyndham Garden Hotel in York. Over 80 people attended the conference. The conference was sponsored by UPS (silver), Foreign Trade Zone 147 (bronze), Core PA Global (bronze), Susquehanna Bank (bronze) and with the support of our partners…
• Utilizing Free Trade Agreements
  Posted by Brooks Whiting, Intern In a seminar held by the WTC, attendees learned about Free Trade Agreements (FTA) and how to take advantage of them. These included NAFTA, S. Korea, Colombia, and Panama.  The most notable benefit of a FTA is the reduction or elimination of tariffs on imported goods.  Another benefit directly associated with FTA’s…
• WTC’s Inaugural State of the Ports Address
  Posted by Shung Li Tan, Intern Normal.dotm 0 0 1 53 305 Philly 2 1 374 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;…
• Action Plan: Developing an International Marketing Strategy
  Posted by Brooks Whiting, Intern Have you ever dreamed of offering your product/service abroad, but were unsure of how to make this dream a reality? The “Pennsylvania International Trade Guide” has readily available resources to help your business reach new customers and begin making global sales.  These resources include “expert tutorials” in subjects such as:  •…
• WTC’s 18th Annual Holiday Luncheon and Reception
  Posted by Hannah Copenheaver This year, we celebrated our 18th Holiday Luncheon and Reception at the Out Door Country Club in York, PA. Every year, we choose a different global location to learn more about how their culture celebrates holidays and exchanges gifts during these times. This year, we decided to choose Africa (specifically East Africa)…
• Doing Business In Mexico Roundtable
  Posted by Alicia Roberto, Intern On November 17th, the World Trade Center Harrisburg hosted a ‘Doing Business in Mexico’ roundtable with the Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC.  Attendees were able to share their experiences, as well as gain insight from others during an open discussion regarding the challenges and opportunities of business in Mexico.  WTC…
• The Impact of Trade
  by Tina Weyant Have you ever wondered how much is really exported from the southcentral PA region?  Actually, it is quite a lot – over $14.4 billion worth of products and services were exported from the 8 counties in our region during 2012! With the help of our interns, we were able to pull together…
• “Bringing the World to YOU!” Success
  Posted by Alicia Roberto, Intern Jan getting the registration table ready for check in! In conjunction with World Trade PA, our 16th annual “Bringing the World to YOU!” event was held at The Abraham Lincoln Hotel in Reading on September 18th.  The event attracted numerous representatives from Pennsylvania’s overseas trade offices and provided companies from…
• Another Successful Fancy Food Show Experience!
  Posted by Tina Weyant The World Trade Center Harrisburg partnered once again with Pennsylvania’s Center for Trade Development  in organizing a “Pennsylvania Pavilion” at the Summer Fancy Food Show,  North America’s largest show for the specialty food and beverage industry.  The show was held at the Javits Convention Center in New York City and featured over 180,000 products…
• International Trade Conference Event Recap
  SAFETY, SECURITY, AND COUNTERINTELLIGENCE Corporate and Personnel Protection in a Global Economy    Posted by Hannah Copenheaver On Tuesday, May 13, 2014, we held our 15th annual international trade conference at the Eden Resort and Conference Center in Lancaster, PA. The conference was focused on Safety, Security and Counterintelligence and featured experts from the FBI…
• WTC Intern Presents at Lebanon Valley College’s Inquiry 2014!
  Posted by Luke Stouffer On Thursday, April 10, I was given the opportunity to present my internship here at World Trade Center Harrisburg as part of the “International Internship Corner” at Lebanon Valley College’s Inquiry 2014.  Inquiry is a symposium dedicated to celebrating the scholarly, scientific, and creative achievements of LVC students.  There were several…
• International Water Company Welcomes Liberian Delegation
  Posted by Hannah Copenheaver Marc Ward, COO, welcoming Mayor Mvogo On March 5, 2014, International Water Company hosted a delegation from Monrovia, Liberia, which included the city’s Mayor, Clara Doe Mvogo, and other government officials. The country continues to search for ways to give their citizens clean water and heard about International Water Company’s portable…
• Export Credit Insurance Seminar
  Posted by Keith Wiley, Intern On February 19th the World Trade Center Harrisburg hosted an Export Credit Insurance Seminar. Our speaker, John Strayhorn, President of Global Insurance Services, gave a very informative presentation.  Attendees learned an extensive amount about Export Credit Insurance and how to expand sales as well as borrowing capacity. The following topics…
• Consider Cultural Differences Before Exporting Your Product
  Posted by Luke Stouffer, Intern If you believe you have a product that can be successfully exported, and you need a primer on exporting know-how, check out the “Pennsylvania International Trade Guide“. This useful resource was developed by our sister organization, the WTC Philadelphia, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Office of International Business Development.  The…
• 17th Annual Holiday Luncheon and Reception
  Posted by Keith Wiley, Intern On December 6th, the World Trade Center Harrisburg Team hosted the 17th annual Holiday Luncheon and Reception. This year we had a particularly interesting luncheon program focused on the Dominican Republic.  WTC member Irma Olivo, Sales Manager for Latin America at Integra Life Sciences was our presenter.  Check out our photos from the luncheon…
• Oakworks Tour Success!
  Posted by Cody Richard, Intern On October 25, WTC members had the opportunity to tour the manufacturing facility and showroom of Oakworks Inc, Since 1977 Oakworks Inc. has been committed to providing safe, durable, comfortable and ergonomic equipment to industries supporting the health and well being of people all over the globe. Oakworks produces tables for medical, massage, and spa uses and currently sells…
• Risk Management Seminar
  by Cody Richard, Intern As part of our annual  “Bringing the World to YOU!”  on September 20th s in Lancaster we offered a  “Managing Trade Payments and FX in Global Markets”, which was presented by Amy Sahm, Senior Vice President and Manager of Fulton International Group. Amy Sahm The numerous topics discussed in Ms. Sahm’s presentation…
• “Bringing the World to YOU!” Recap
  Posted by Cody Richard, Intern Our 15th annual “Bringing the World to YOU!” event was held on September 20th at the Best Western Premier Eden Resorts & Suites in Lancaster.  In this event we hosted several representatives from Pennsylvania’s overseas trade offices and offered regional companies the opportunity to meet one-on-one with the State’s trade…
• PA at the 2013 Summer Fancy Food Show
  Posted by Tina Weyant The 59th annual Summer Fancy Food Show was held from June 30th through July 2nd  at the Javits Convention Center in New York City.  The world-famous trade show for the specialty food industry featured over 2,400 exhibitors from 80 countries and regions.   The sold-out exhibit halls drew close to 24,000 buyers from across…
• Tips to Boost Your Business with Pinterest
  Posted by Hannah Copenheaver Pinterest is gaining global attention for its visual style of creating online “pinboards”, where you can “pin” great ideas, or products,  to remember them for later. Keeping your favorite “pins” all in one place on the web allows for a more effective organization method. You can access your pinboards at any…
• Central PA Product Development Company Recognized With Design Awards
  Posted by  guest blogger Kevin Smith, Global Sales Initiatives IDE Group, an international product development company based in Sydney, Australia and offices in the Hershey Center for Applied Research has recently been recognized with a number of design excellence awards for several projects in the Life Sciences market. IDE and partner Atomo Diagnostics recently won…
• 2013 International Trade Conferece
  Posted by Tina Weyant Our Annual International Trade Conference was held in conjunction with the York County Economic Alliance’s International Business & Workforce Expo.   The Expo featured domestic and international businesses, representing a wide variety of industry sectors including manufacturing, healthcare, education and business services. Part of the exhibit area was designated as the International Corner, marked…
• Intensive Export Finance Seminar Focused on Letters of Credit
  Posted by Cody Richard WTC Intern   Our “Secrets of Successful Trade Financing” two day seminar was held on Thursday March 21st and Friday, March 22nd at the WTC Offices.  Attendees came from as far away as Georgia and represented vastly different industry sectors. Richard M. “Chip” Thomas lead the discussion on behalf of the…
• Full House at “Business Travel Roundtable”
  Posted by Hannah Copenheaver WTC Intern Our Business Travel Roundtable was held in the morning of Friday, February 22nd at the WTC Offices. The discussion was part of our Global Trade Topics Roundtable Series and focused on international business travel experiences. WTC members Kim Willing (HydroWorx) and Adam Say (RoomMates– a division of York Wallcoverings)…
• A New Look for the New Year
  As we begin the New Year, we have some exciting news to share with you!  We are transitioning to a new look, logo and website for our organization. Along with our new look, we are pleased to also announce outreach office locations in Reading, Harrisburg and Chambersburg.    Over the past few months, the World Trade…
• “Bringing the World to YOU!” Success
  Company meetings Posted by Tina Our 14th annual “Bringing the World to YOU!”event was held on September 13th and the Holiday Inn in Grantville.  This is the day that we host representatives from Pennsylvania’s overseas trade offices and offer regional companies the opportunity to meet one-on-one with the State’s trade reps. We look forward to this event…
• Yes, You Can Go Global!
  Guest Blogger Kevin Smith Principal, Global Sales Initiatives   Every business is focused on growth. This includes top and bottom lines, along with managing many details in between. In that pursuit, one of our daily challenges is finding new sources of revenue, whether it’s selling more of our current product set, developing new products or penetrating…
• A Brightened Thursday Morning!
  Posted by Melissa Walking into the office this morning brought a smile to my face as beautiful flowers were sitting on my desk.  Not only was I smiling because of how pretty the flowers look, but also because these flowers represented that the work we do here at the World Trade Center of Central PA…
• 2012 Philadelphia Port Tour
  Posted by Melissa For the third year, we organized a tour of the Philadelphia seaport and UPS hub at the Philadelphia airport. Thanks to our enthusiastic hosts, Craig Feister and his colleagues at UPS, and Dominic O’Brien and his colleagues at the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority! Everyone again enjoyed touring and learning more about the Philly…
• Permanent Normal Trade Relations With Russia
  Posted by Tina The United States currently does not provide permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to Russia, because of the Jackson-Vanik amendment to the Trade Act of 1974.  The Jackson-Vanik amendment was created during the cold war to put pressure on the Soviet Union by linking free trade to human rights, including the freedom of emigration.  Under…
• Using Social Media at the Fancy Food Show: How We Did it…
  Posted by Melissa To promote use of social media at the trade show, the organizers set up a social media lounge, which featured a live stream of tweets with the show’s hashtag To promote the PA Exhibit area at the Fancy Food Show in Washington, D.C., we followed our own advice and took the before, during and…
• Seen at the Fancy Food Show
  Posted by Tina One of the things that always amazes me at trade shows is how a huge exhibit area can be transformed from seeming chaos to a pristine exhibit area in an amazingly short time: From start… Setting up Unpacking ….to Finish! Some eye catching exhibits: (for more pictures of exhibits, visit our trade show…
• PA Exhibit at Fancy Food Show 2012
  Posted by Melissa The World Trade Center of Central PA in conjunction with the State of PA’s Office of International Business Development organized a PA Pavilion at the Summer Fancy Food Show in Washington DC from June 17-19, 2012.  This initiative was funded in part through a STEP grant through the U.S. Small Business Administration….
• The Importance of Export Compliance & Procedures
  Posted by Tina The first rule to remember is that in the United States exporting is a privilege – and the privilege to export can be revoked if a person or company is found to be in violation of export laws and regulations.    The second rule to remember is that US Customs expects the use of…
• Tradeshow Social Media
  Posted by Melissa Even with the ease and efficiency of the Internet and technology to connect companies with new business, tradeshows are still a must-attend event.  The marketing and promotion of these tradeshows, however, is changing.   Social media is a fast, engaging way to reach your audience before, during and after your show.  Social media…
• Pennsylvania’s Free Export Assistance Services
  Posted by Tina Did you know that the State of Pennsylvania has the most comprehensive export assistance program of any state?  And that their services are offered mostly at no cost to companies in the Commonwealth? We are very fortunate to be located in a State that is so forward thinking and committed to supporting…
• Social Slam Conference Takeaways
  Posted by Melissa Last month, I attended the Social Slam Conference in Knoxville, TN organized by the Social Media Club Knoxville.  I absolutely loved being among like-minded social media professionals.  It was a great day of learning and reinforcement.  The day made me feel energized and the speakers were absolutely fabulous, providing useful tips and ideas. …
• Henry Molded Products Company Tour
  Guest Blogger John Englebert On April 27, Henry Molded Products, (HMP) hosted our group for a company tour and wonderful breakfast presentation about the innovative products and successful practices of their company at their facility in Lebanon. Henry Molded Products manufacturers an array of high quality molded fiber/pulp products.  Their product line ranges from custom designed applications…
• NASBITE Conference
  Posted by Melissa On April 18-20, 2012 I attended the 25th Annual North American Small Business International Trade Educators (NASBITE) Conference in Portland, Oregon. The days were packed with numerous breakout sessions, ranging from China and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Currency Exchange Issues to Opportunities in Colombia. The keynote sessions included Lessons Learned in…
• A Day in the Life of a WTC Intern
  Guest Blogger John Englebert John Englebert explains his internship experience at a Lebanon Valley College event                 My day starts waking up early in the morning to prepare to go to class.  I then head over to my college center for breakfast and immediately afterwards head over to class.  The days I work at the…
• Climbing High for Global Expansion
  Posted by Tina Rich Wurzbach on top of a 400 foot wind turbine tower in Denmark  “It really is a fantastic story of support from the World Trade Center of Central Pennsylvania and the State’s International Office” says Richard Wurzbach, President of York Laboratories. York Laboratories developed a grease sampling device and analysis instrument, which requires…
• Annual International Trade Conference
  On April 3, 2012 we hosted our Annual International Trade Conference in Harrisburg. This year’s theme was “Navigating the Chinese Market”.  The conference started with two morning breakout sessions with two choices for each session. Topics for the breakout sessions included Effective Payment Mechanisms, Understanding the Chinese Culture & Useful Expressions, Identifying & Qualifying Chinese…
• Our First Language Course Offering: Mandarin 1 for Business
  class in session Posted by Tina We started off the New Year with a completely new offering:  a ten week course in Mandarin Chinese.  The course not only focused on language skills, but also offered cultural tips, especially for a business setting. Even the book that we used was very much focused on a business environment.   We…
• “Wilkommen” to Pennsylvania!
  Posted by Tina Last month we hosted a visiting trade delegation from Germany in the southcentral PA region.  The group was sponsored by the  German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology  and was comprised of 9 advanced manufacturing firms who visited the East Coast in search of potential business opportunities.  Click here for a listing of the participants,…
• Celebrating 20 Years!
  Posted by Tina   Our members and friends enjoyed a wonderful evening at the Valencia Ballroom in York as we celebrated our 20th Anniversary as an organization. We have come a long way over the past 20 years and our continued growth and success is because of our members, our sponsors and our partners.  This evening…
• Mobile Marketing Statistics
  Posted by Melissa Some interesting facts about worldwide usage of Mobile Marketing: ·         77 percent of the world population are mobile subscribers ·         25 percent of mobile Web users are mobile-only in the US ·         8 trillion text messages will be sent in 2011. ·         In the UK and France opt-in SMS gets the best…
• PoolPak Company Tour
  Posted by Tina On October 27, PoolPak International hosted our group for a company tour and luncheon discussion about the successes and challenges they face in competing in a global marketplace.  PoolPak International manufacturers a full line of dehumidification systems designed for indoor pool applications, such as large athletic pools, natatoriums in schools and universities, commercial pools and…
• Melissa’s List of #TwitterDonts and How to Fix Them
  Posted by Melissa Here is my list of #twitterdonts for the month of October, dealing with unnecessary self-promotion.  I don’t consider myself an expert on this topic by any means, but I have made some observations in the “twitterverse” and would like to offer some helpful suggestions to make your tweets more effective: –          “Now following…” tweets o   Most…
• An Overlooked Aspect of Exporting……Packaging…
  Guest Blogger Sara E Scarfo, Bentley World Packaging There are many positive and rewarding aspects to exporting products overseas. However, many companies can find themselves in a costly situation if they have not considered the complete supply chain.  A largely overlooked cost in exporting overseas is the packaging of your product.  Failure to understand the…
• Another Successful “Bringing the World to YOU!” Event
  Posted by Tina September 14 was a busy day for everyone at the WTC as we hosted 20 of Pennsylvania’s Overseas Trade Representatives for a day of one-on-one company appointments, networking and learning opportunities.   We scheduled over 130 individual company meetings throughout the day, offering companies in southcentral PA a unique opportunity to not only learn more about…
• 2011 Port Tour Sold Out!
  Adam Say raffling prizes Posted by Tina We had a lot of fun during this year’s tour of the Philadelphia seaport and UPS hub at the Philadelphia airport – thanks to our enthusiastic hosts, Adam Say and his team mates at UPS, and Dominic O’Brien and his colleagues at the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority. Thanks…