Ohio Export Internship Program helps drive in new sales for businesses

Ohio businesses provide a wide variety of products and services, a fact increasingly noticed by customers overseas. And to capitalize on this trend, the region’s business community and centers of higher learning have put their heads together to meet the growing demand.
“Central Ohio is just perfect for international transportation,” says Tim Sword, program manager for the Ohio Export Internship Program. “We can access markets to the north through Toledo or Cleveland, you have the Ohio River (that can carry goods) all the way to the Gulf … all of these things are making for more opportunities in Ohio.”

Paired for export growth

Ohio merchandise exports increased nearly twice as fast as the rest of the country last year, with a value of $50.5 billion — an increase of 3.9 percent over 2012, compared to 2.1 percent growth in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
As the ninth-largest exporting state, Ohio sent goods to more than 200 countries and territories, with 45 groups recording exports in excess of $100 million. In fact, 11 groups passed the $1 billion mark.
To take advantage of this trend, the Ohio Export Internship Program was created three years ago as a partnership between the Ohio Development Services Agency and The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business.
The aim of the program is two-fold — give students the tools they need to succeed in today’s business climate, and provide Ohio companies with interns specifically trained to get their export programs up and running.
“The experience these interns are getting is invaluable,” says David Goodman, ODSA director. “This program is training our future workforce, and many interns are being offered either extended internships or full-time jobs as a result of their work.”
Through the program, students complete coursework centered on exportation and business networking.
In addition, they are paired with Ohio companies with a desire to grow their exports. So far 60 students have been matched with Ohio companies — 12 of which were offered extended internships afterward — and companies have reported about $180,000 in actual sales and more than $4 million in projected sales due to the interns’ work.

Set up for long-term success

Sword says many businesses first begin exporting because an overseas client has approached them, but it takes more than responding to requests for long-term success.
“(Businesses) will start by just being reactive to these requests, which is a good way to get started, but to make an impact they need to do a number of things,” Sword says.
“Just because someone from, say, Estonia or Costa Rica contacts you, that doesn’t necessarily mean that may be your best market,” he says. “What is required is for you to have focus, and get the right people in place to help you with your strategy.”
U.S. Bridge, a Cambridge-based bridge design and manufacturing company that is a division of The Ohio Bridge Corp., saw its export operations grow after participating in the program.
Chairman Richard D. Rogovin says the arrangement was mutually beneficial.
“These students, I think they gained a lot, and we certainly gained a lot,” Rogovin says. “We were very impressed — this was the first time we’ve (participated in the program), and we’ll do it again.”
U.S. Bridge, which has exported its products to Tanzania, South America and the Caribbean, took on two interns last year.
The interns, both international students, are fluent in Spanish and French respectively, and were assigned to territories where U.S. Bridge was trying to increase its market presence.
“Our intern from Peru, we assigned him to the Latin American market, so he was basically talking to governments, ministries of transportation in the countries we were interested in.
“Our other intern we assigned to Canada,” Rogovin says. “The interns did such a good job that we had them start talking to private organizations — mining companies, construction companies — talking about our products in (Spanish and French).”

Starting an export operation

Rogovin says it’s important to get your ducks in a row before getting into the export business.
“To begin exporting, you need to get hold of the U.S. Commercial Service and get some help getting agents and distributors overseas,” Rogovin says. “Once you have that help, you need to get hold of a lawyer who does international transactions for help on writing some basic documents, someone who knows what they’re doing.”
The third step is to talk to a bank about export finance and letters of credit, he says.
“Be prepared to spend a lot of money, because you’re going to have to travel — you have to go to those markets, you have to meet your distributors and you have to understand the market and what the people want,” Rogovin says. “Don’t go into this unless you have plenty of resources — it cost us probably $2 million to start exporting.”
Rogovin says U.S. Bridge began to see a return on that investment after about six years.
“Get a good, solid base. You should have at least 50 employees, $10 million (in domestic sales) and money in the bank,” he says.

Seizing an opportunity

It’s not just the businesses that have gained from the Ohio Export Internship Program. One of U.S. Bridge’s interns, Gonzalo Adriazola-Mendoza, who is from Peru, says the idea of working in the international market has always appealed to him.
“Basically what we did was bring the company closer to these markets and develop relationships with key players in the industry to increase awareness of the products we offer overseas,” he says.
Maintaining a friendly and professional demeanor was the key to forging those relationships.

“As far as contacts overseas, I think as long as you’re professional they will welcome you with open arms,” Adriazola-Mendoza says. “Because they know the professionalism and the quality that comes with working with the U.S.”