CBI News Bulletin November / December 2005

Seminars and Workshops
CBI News Bulletin Page 30 CBI News
Anyone undergoing two full weeks
of intensive lectures, discussions,
assignments and excursions on the
complexities of export marketing and
trade promotion techniques – five
days a week, eight hours a day – is
likely to have a hard time summing it
all up. But ask a few of the participants
in the CBI´s Fame XIII seminar
and you´ll get the complete works in
two words: preparedness and focus.
“That´s what it´s all about.”
Mrs. Melicia J. Perena from the Philippines
(photos De Jong,
Bekedam & Van Es, Rotterdam).
FAME XIII trainer Wybren Bouwes warns BSO
representatives: ´The EU market is not a soukh´
The science of
export BY STEPHEN D. TEEUWEN
The thirteenth Fame seminar took place
from September 19 to 30 just a stone´s
throw away from the CBI office in downtown
Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The
Fame seminars, held twice a year, offer
representatives of Business Support
Organisations (BSOs) in developing
countries the opportunity to familiarise
themselves with export marketing and
trade promotion techniques. Participants
are mainly employed by chambers of
commerce, industry associations, export
councils and the like. The two-week
seminars are aimed at increasing their
knowledge of trade structures and business
practices on European markets, as
well as equipping them with tools for
matching the needs of their countries´
exporters with European market
demands. Also, participants improve
their skills in designing and implementing
export development programmes
and benefit from sharing knowledge and
experiences with colleagues from all over
the developing world.
The power of interaction
The thirteenth edition brought together
some thirty BSO representatives from
eighteen nations and several continents.
“The mixture of countries represented at
the seminar is very enriching”, says
Charles Tumbo of Kenya´s Export
Promotion Council. “You soon discover
that BSOs across the world face many of
the same challenges. Through networking
we can help solve each other´s
problems.” Seminar coordinator Wybren
Bouwes, a retired Dutch import and
export veteran happy to share his knowledge
and experience with younger successors,
says the Fame seminar is structured
so as to stimulate this kind of interaction
among participants. “In terms of
actual lectures, we probably could cut
the seminar´s duration in half if we
wanted to. But the group assignments,
discussions, participants´ presentations
and excursions on the Dutch market add
a lot of value to the content. Participants
learn as much from each other as they
do from the lectures.”
This time round, the participants were
particularly open-minded and eager to
learn, Bouwes adds. “The average age in
this group was thirty-three, which is
younger than usual. Perhaps that contributed
to the fact that they were exceptionally
active and assertive. From the
coffee break on day one, we noticed by
the noise they were making and the fun
they were having how well they got on
together and how eager they were to
challenge each other and learn as much
as possible.”
Be prepared
As for effectiveness, the Fame seminar
seemed to have left its marks on participants
by the end. “The main message for
me is that if you want to export to
Europe, you have to be thoroughly prepared”,
says Jorge Hernandez, an international
business consultant for the
Guatemala Chamber of Industry. “You
can´t just get up one day and decide to
start exporting. The seminar showed me
more than ever that you have to have a
detailed export marketing plan, you have
to know all about European import legislation,
and you have to know which of
your products you´re going to focus on
for exports. I already knew you have to
be prepared. But the seminar showed me
what that really means and how to do it.”
Jane Perena of the Philippines´ Chamber
of Furniture Industries, drew much the
same conclusion. “For me, it´s all about
focus, not just knowing what you want
yourself, but also being clear about what
the market wants. A lot of our businesses
have an idea, they have some money, a
few products they think are good – and
they think that´s enough. But it´s not.”
Know your price
Hernandez´ and Perena´s words echoed
what trainer Wybren Bouwes told the