Trade summit touted as ‘experience of a lifetime’

Fort Frances resident Gisela Seis is calling her recent participation in the first-ever Canada/U.S. Businesswoman’s Trade Summit in Toronto “an experience of a lifetime,” and one packed with ideas for female entrepreneurs interested in the international marketplace.
“It was a great learning experience and an inspirational one for me,” Seis, the controller at Northland Computers Plus here, enthused Monday.
“Much of what I learned will be of interest to members of the [local] Business Women’s Network, especially the legal and financial aspects involved in doing business across the border,” she added.
“And as far as Northland Computers is concerned, I made quite a few contacts we could sell our ‘Point of Sale’ system to,” Seis noted. “I found three business owners who expressed interest.”
Seis was one of 300 North American businesswomen selected to participate in the trade summit–an initiative between the Canadian and U.S. governments.
International Trade minister Sergio Marchi co-chaired the summit with U.S. Commerce Secretary William M. Daley and Aida Alvarez, administrator, U.S. Small Business Administration.
Seis attended eight trade-related workshops over the five-day summit, including a roundtable discussion on trade policy recommendations.
“Making the Border Work-Customs” was the focus of dialogue exchanged at the roundtable Seis chose to sit in on, and included discussions on trade barriers, mistakes, and inconsistencies encountered by businesswomen.
“We exchanged our experiences in getting goods across the border and made recommendations on what could be improved,” she explained.
While she agreed there were problems getting goods and services across the border, Seis did not believe the difficulties were insurmountable.
Border/customs issues of concern to Canadian and American businesswomen at the roundtable included complaints on complicated paperwork and commodity classifications, products frequently torn open for inspection, and complex tax policies and regulations.
A mini-trade show also was held during the summit, giving American and Canadian women the chance to showcase their business products to each other.
“There were some really innovative ideas presented [and] quite an interesting mixture of women in traditionally male-related businesses,” noted Seis, listing showcases of safety equipment, concrete paving, pipeline, and environmentally-friendly tanks as examples.
Seis also plans to make a presentation on the trade summit to the Rainy River Future Development Corp. here.