On the 26th of November, following the high profile visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to the UK, Andrea hosted a business workshop alongside the China Britain Business Council (CBBC).
“China & Britain: What the New Golden Era Means to My Business” was sponsored by Associated Waste Management and took place in Morley Town Hall. Approximately forty local businesses operating in areas including manufacturing, import and export, education and the NHS attended.
The event also marked the relaunch of the Morley and Outwood Business Association (MOBA) which was set up by Andrea two years ago in order to provide opportunities for local businesses to grow.
Andrea opened the event with a speech detailing her first-hand experiences in China and also giving the audience a taste of the exciting projects potentially available for local businesses. She visited China in September this year as part of a delegation from the All Party Parliamentary Group on China, chaired by Richard Graham MP.
Linda Rosen, from the CBBC, gave an in-depth market analysis covering how to support UK companies and organisations to enter, develop and grow in the Chinese market.
James Love from James Love Legal followed and made the audience aware of the problems faced when dealing with intellectual property copyright in China. The Chairman of Morley-based ATB Group, Ian Lomax, shared his successful experiences operating in China for the last two decades.
Susan Waterson, from UKTI, outlined the services provided by the Chamber of Commerce to help businesses formulate strategies to successfully enter the foreign market.
The event was concluded with a Q&A session with Andrea.
She said:
“In order for local businesses to flourish, we first need to work very closely with all trade promotion agencies and our other partners to ensure that Yorkshire has a fair share of the investments from China.”
Speaking after the event she added:
“I was delighted by the turnout and the enthusiasm shown by local businesses.
“The new trading relationship with China opens a new frontier for businesses of all sizes to expand across the globe.”
Linda Rosen said
“This was the best roadshow organised so far by the CBBC and local constituencies.”
MOBA will be hosting further events in future. To stay up to date, please e-mail [email protected].
