UW and Wyoming SBDC Network to Host Fifth Webinar in State Trade Expansion Program Series

The Wyoming Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network continues its six-part webinar series about the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) that will guide small-business owners through the steps to expand into international trade and to provide real-world examples from successful Wyoming small-business exporters.

Multiple speakers will discuss how shipping products to market can be a difficult task without the right knowledge beforehand during the fifth webinar in the series titled “The Logistics of Export” from noon-1 p.m. Wednesday, March 8. To register, go here. Registration is free.

The webinar will focus on the finer points of freight forwarding, distribution and getting shipments where they need to be in a timely fashion.

Speakers are Mark Saxelby, director of business development for Crane Worldwide Logistics, and Chester Chu, Wyoming-Asia Pacific Trade Office director for the Wyoming Business Council.

Saxelby is a 34-year supply chain industry veteran, force multiplier, revenue creator and problem solver in global supply chain management, customs compliance, duty reduction/deferment, logistics, fulfillment and final mile-white glove services. Chu will share best practices -- customs, distribution and freight forwarding -- for shipping to Asian markets, as well as assistance the Wyoming-Asia Pacific Trade Office can offer to companies exploring the Asia Pacific market, getting through customs and what it takes on that end.

In 2019, Wyoming companies exported more than $1.37 billion in goods to the world. Of the companies that export, 97 percent are small businesses.

The webinar training series is presented in collaboration with the Wyoming Business Council, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), U.S. Department of Commerce and Wyoming APEX Accelerator, which is housed at the University of Wyoming. This series will help small businesses evaluate whether exporting might be right for them; help them develop an initial exporting plan; and explain how to access grant funding that may be available in Wyoming to help offset some of the costs of becoming export ready.

The last webinar in the series titled “Money Talk” is scheduled March 22.

For more information, call Maureen Johnson, marketing, communication and database manager for the Wyoming SBDC Network, at (307) 343-0925 or email mjohn125@uwyo.edu.

The Wyoming SBDC Network offers business expertise to help Wyoming residents think about, launch, grow, reinvent or exit their business. The Wyoming SBDC Network is hosted by UW with state funds from the Wyoming Business Council and funded, in part, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. SBA.