RICHMOND – The Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) today announced the acceptance of a City of Bristol company, Strongwell Corporation, into its two-year Virginia Leaders in Export Trade (VALET) program. The VALET program assists exporters in the Commonwealth that have firmly established domestic operations and are committed to international exporting as a growth strategy. To participate, each business must meet both quantitative and qualitative selection criteria. Participating firms are chosen based on their dedication to growing export sales. To date, 304 Virginia companies have been accepted to participate in the VALET program.
“VALET has provided a vehicle for participating companies to reach global markets and grow their business on a global scale since 2002,” said VEDP President and CEO Stephen Moret. “The benefit of international trade to Virginia’s economy cannot be overstated, and I am confident that with a continued commitment to exporting, these businesses will see a strong return on investment in the coming years.”
Currently, the VALET program has 50 companies as participants. The program provides participating companies with export planning services and assistance from a team of experienced international service providers to help meet their international goals. These private sector service providers contribute essential expertise to assist companies in executing export plans and include attorneys, web designers, bankers, translators, accountants, and freight forwarders.
“The VALET program puts participating companies on the fast track to international business growth by connecting them with the necessary tools for successful international sales,” said Paul Grossman, VEDP Vice President of International Trade. “Since its inception in 2002, the program has worked with more than 300 businesses to accelerate their international sales growth. We are happy to welcome Strongwell Corporation to VALET and look forward to working with them over the course of the next two years.”
The Commonwealth of Virginia exports more than $34 billion in goods and services annually. Exports of Virginia’s products and services to the world are vital to the growth of the Commonwealth, supporting more than 232,000 jobs and generating $2 billion in tax revenue. VEDP offers numerous programs to assist Virginia companies with selling in the global marketplace and has a network of international market research consultants covering more than 70 countries around the globe.
Strongwell Corporation
Strongwell is the recognized leader in the manufacture of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composites utilizing the pultrusion process. Strongwell has pultruded FRP composite structural products since 1956 and remains active in product, process, and market development programs. Strongwell’s four manufacturing facilities offer more than 730,000 sq. ft. (67,819 sq m) of space to house over 65 pultrusion machines, ranging from those capable of pultruding very large parts (for example, a 36″ double-web beam) to those capable of pultruding up to 40 lines at a time. For more information, please visit http://www.strongwell.com
Virginia Economic Development Partnership
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership was created by the Virginia General Assembly in 1995 to encourage, stimulate, and support the development and expansion of the economy of the Commonwealth. To accomplish its objectives of promoting economic expansion within the Commonwealth, the Partnership focuses its efforts on business recruitment, expansion and international trade.
For more information on the VALET Program, visit http://exportvirginia.org/services/programs-grants/
