PROSPER MAGAZINE: DIGITAL EDITION
BLACK COUNTRY INTERNATIONAL

Sign up for the Trader Support Service:
On 1st January 2021, the Northern Ireland Protocol comes into force and there will be changes to the way goods move between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The Trader Support Service is free to use and guides business through any changes to the way goods move between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Please encourage any business contacts that trade with Northern Ireland sign-up for this service.
Sign up HERE
DIT SXSW 2021 Virtual Trade Mission
DIT will partner with Britain’s most innovative creative companies – including advertising, screen, immersive, experience, music, design and branding, social media, and games – to co-create a high-impact Trade Mission that will drive buyer engagement.
Sign up HERE
Meet the Distributor / Buyer Ireland
In mid-January DIT will organise a construction webinar featuring three Irish buyers – one involved in residential, one in commercial (especially retro-fitting) and one hardware distributor. This will be followed by 1-1 meeting opportunities in February.
Meet the Contractor – Africa
This event in mid Feb or early March will feature contractors delivering major infrastructure projects in a number of African markets – explaining what sub-contractors they need and how to get onto their preferred supplier shortlists.
Advanced Manufacturing - Meet the Buyer – China
This is focused on specialist niche suppliers in very specific areas like advanced machine tools, sensors for manufacturing and remanufacturing. This latter topic will be covered first- early January with the others in Feb/March 2021.
21st - 25th FEBRUARY
Virtual Meet the Buyer & Trade Visit
Part 2: Mission to Gulfood Exhibition
The Department for International Trade invites food and drink producers from across the Midlands Engine to participate in this virtual meet the buyer event with the option to join the world’s largest food event – Gulfood 2021 in Dubai.
This virtual meet the buyer event is the ideal first step for businesses wanting to grow their sales and operate in the following product categories:
Premium Grocery | Health & Wellness | Free From | Fortified Products
Working with the Great British Food Platform, this Great British event includes:
Part 1: Meet the Buyer Virtual Mission from UK
• Mission Briefing in the UK
• Food & Drink UAE Market Update
• Mind of the Buyer Webinar
• Inclusion of your products into sample hampers for interested buyers (companies are responsible for the cost of sending items to the UK Great British Food Platform HQ for inclusion in a hamper)
• Meet the Buyer – 1:1 call week
Food and Drink is a huge sector in the UAE - the COVID-19 pandemic has boosted online grocery searches by 560% in the UAE and total food and drink sales are projected to grow by 6.9% to £29.5B.
Application Process:
Step 1: Apply HERE
Step 2: EOI applications will be reviewed
Step 3: Successful applications will be notified, and buyer matchmaking will begin.
Contact International Trade Advisor Marion Doherty for further information:
Marion.Doherty@mobile.trade.gov.uk or telephone: 0330 024 0820

ABOUT BLACK COUNTRY INTERNATIONAL
The Black Country Chamber of Commerce are committed to helping their members and businesses around the region with the smooth transition of goods and services across international borders.
Black Country International services can help with export documentation, train and develop teams and keep up to date with trends and topics which impact how businesses export and import.
Whether a business is new to trading internationally or an experienced exporter, the team can help develop a strategy that’s right and help the process of doing business easier.
If you would like to find out how the Black Country International Trade team can help your business expand overseas, then please get in touch via email: Marion.Doherty@mobile.trade.gov.uk or telephone: 0330 024 0820. Alternatively, visit our WEBSITE to find out more: