• KOTRA MAKES WAY FOR
  KOREAN BUSINESSES TO
  EXPAND CONSUMER
  BASE IN POLAND
•    On June 29, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) kicked off Korea Expo 2017 in Warsaw, Poland to help Korean companies enter the European market.
     The two-day event connecting Korean firms and global buyers was the largest of its kind since 1989, when Korea and Poland established diplomatic relations. It convened a total of 450 buyers from 25 countries and 62 Korean small and medium enterprises specializing in cosmetics, food products, daily goods and medical
  
• devices. A variety of programs were offered, including one-on-one business meetings, a Korea-Poland business partnership forum and a corporate social responsibility (CSR) session. Most notably, the forum explored ways to facilitate cooperation in trade and investment between the two countries.
     Poland is currently Korea’s largest export market in Eastern Europe, thanks to the growing popularity of Korean products. In 2016, Korea’s exports to Poland recorded USD 2.91 billion, up 3.7 percent from a year earlier.

• KOTRA PUBLISHES
  COLLECTION OF
  COLLECTION OF
  COMPANY SUCCESS
  CASES
•    On July 4, KOTRA published its 2017 Collection of Foreign-invested Company Success Stories. The book is a collection of interviews with companies that were first published in KOTRA’s monthly English magazine, KOTRA Express, for the past three years.
     The companies in the collection noted that Korea is one of the best locations to manufacture world-class products. Moreover, with a free trade agreement network covering 75 percent of global territory, the businesses were using Korea as a bridgehead to advance into major
• markets around the world. Some of the companies that were interviewed include TUV SUD Korea, Panasonic Korea and Toray Advanced Materials Korea.
     "Foreign-invested companies take up only 2.1 percent of the businesses in Korea, but they play a significant role in the local economy, accounting for 21 percent of all exports and 5.8 percent of employment,” said Kim Yong Kook, head of Invest KOREA. “I hope the collection will help Koreans see foreign-invested companies in a new light by highlighting their positive effects.”

• KOREA BRAND &
  ENTERTAINMENT
  EXPO UTILIZES KOREAN
  WAVE TO ATTRACT
  HONG KONG BUYERS
•    From July 12 to 14, the Korea Brand & Entertainment Expo (KBEE) was held at the Asia World Expo in Hong Kong. Hosted by MOTIE and organized by KOTRA, the event invited 350 foreign buyers interested in working with Korean companies specializing in products and services in the Korean cultural industry.
     Thanks to growing demand for Korean products in Hong Kong, over 103 Korean companies met with buyers to showcase their cultural
• goods during special pitching events. Nine MOUs were also signed during the expo.
     A number of events took place on the sidelines of the event, including K-pop performances and business consultation sessions to help prospective exporters enter the Hong Kong and Chinese market. Participants also had the opportunity to learn more about Korea’s beauty and fashion products through hands-on programs and art collaboration exhibitions.

• KOREAN SMES SEEK TO
  JOIN WALMART’S
  SUPPLY CHAIN
•    KOTRA held the Walmart Power Vendor 1:1 Business Meeting in Bentonville, Arkansas, to help Korea’s promising consumer goods companies enter the retail supply chain of the United States.
     During the event held on July 18, KOTRA provided opportunities for 12 Korean suppliers to have in-depth business meetings with nine Walmart vendors. Walmart selected these Korean participants out of 70 applicants, based on price, quality and innovation. Business consultation services were also offered for a variety of sectors, including food and beverage, beauty products, household
• essentials and packaging supplies.
     In particular, Walmart buyers were especially interested in innovative Korean products ranging from new packaging materials, foldable plastic boxes for long- term use and heated lunch boxes.
     In regards to the event, Joonhwa Bin, director general of KOTRA’s Korea Business Center in Dallas, said that KOTRA is slated to assist the expansion of Korean companies in the American retail market by hosting additional export consultations with Central Market, the largest gourmet grocery store chain in Texas owned by HEB Grocery Company.