Trade mission nets $1.05B for Mo. exporters

Mike Downing: $1.25 billion in exports are scheduled after trade missions this year.

Trade missions aren’t Garry Froese’s cup of tea.

Yet the ArmorThane USA Inc. owner found himself in South America last month rubbing shoulders with potential clients for his company’s polyurethane protective coatings.

The atypical travel has paid off to the tune of three new clients and $700,000 in anticipated sales.

“Hopefully, that will help fill some of the void that’s been created by the oil and gas [industry],” Froese said. “It looks like there’s promise there.”

ArmorThane, 2660 N. Eastgate Ave., manufactures and distributes polyurethane protective coatings used in truck bed linings to containment for oil, sewer and other hazardous materials and from blast mitigation assistance to foam insulation.

About 40 percent of the Springfield company’s sales are in exports, but Froese said depressed oil and gas markets have stunted company revenue in recent years. Last year’s revenue of roughly $10 million was down about 20 percent from 2014, he said.

That’s the backdrop for Froese accepting an invitation in November from the governor’s office and the state Department of Economic Development. Missouri officials had visited the eight-employee manufacturer earlier in the year and knew ArmorThane exported to Peru.

The Jan. 30-Feb. 5 trip included face-to-face meetings with company executives in Peru and Colombia. ArmorThane was the only Springfield-area representative among the six participating Missouri businesses.

Agreements signed on the trip amounted to $1.05 billion in trade, according to economic development officials.

“The other businesses were from the Kansas City and St. Louis areas, as well as the Bootheel,” said Scott Holste, spokesman for the governor’s office. “The agreements in both countries to bilaterally boost trade with Missouri by more than $1 billion will mean more Missouri goods and commodities from across the state reaching Colombia and Peru – as well as Panama, where a similar agreement was signed last week during another trade mission.”

Missouri Department of Economic Development Director Mike Downing, who went on both South American trade missions this year, said the state netted $750 million in trade agreements with partners in Colombia, $300 million in agreements in Peru and $200 million in the early March trip to Panama.

Trade relationships with these countries are nothing new.

In 2014, Colombia purchased $81.9 million in Missouri goods and commodities, ranking it as Missouri’s 27th largest trading partner. Peru, Missouri’s 42nd largest trade partner, purchased roughly $25.6 million in products in 2014, and Panama was Missouri’s 49th largest trading partner, accounting for $22.5 million in sales from the Show-Me State.

Since 2011, the DED and governor’s offices have participated in 10 trade missions – including three aerospace-industry trips to Western Europe – resulting in nearly $11 billion in agreements benefitting Missouri businesses. In August, the state was awarded $599,000 from the U.S. Small Business Administration to further its efforts and increase the number of small businesses exporting, especially to emerging markets such as those in South America, through the State Trade Export Promotion Grant Program.

Downing said the grant funds could help offset companies’ travel costs. The Hawthorn Foundation, a statewide economic development group, pays for the governor.

Downing said the trips are carefully planned to maximize the participants’ time, and rough trade terms are known before the tickets are booked.

“The draft is negotiated in advance, and the specifics are worked out up until the time of the signing,” he said.

Froese said the itinerary was jam-packed.

“You go from one meeting to the next. You are generally only allotted an hour to a maximum of an hour and a half. You go through their business and give your own pitch, and then it’s on to the next one,” Froese said.

Downing said the DED screens companies ahead of each trip.

“We’ve been on a long journey the last couple of years to try and educate companies on what is feasible to export, the process of exporting, what are the best markets for particular products and services,” Downing said. “I think companies have understood the benefits and seen the results.”

According to Springfield Business Journal archives, a 2013 trade mission to Taiwan and South Korea resulted in $1.9 billion in trade agreements and stood to benefit several companies already selling into the region: Central States Industrial, Paul Mueller Co., Tracker Marine, Holloway America, International Division Inc. and Custom Metalcraft.

The bulk of ArmorThane’s new sales to South America were tied to blast-mitigation uses, and Froese is optimistic the effort will result in more than single orders.

“I really wouldn’t have been interested in going. I would have normally said, ‘It’s a government thing, and I don’t need it.’ But I saw value in this now, and would certainly entertain it in the future,” Froese said.

Through DED.Mo.gov, companies can find information on training opportunities, read export news or connect with an online trading counselor. A list of Missouri exporters is on the site, too.

Froese recommends other small-business owners take advantage of resources available through state agencies, private insurers or lenders.

He said many companies can receive inquiries about sales from international sources via the Internet, but following up can be daunting.

“The first step is to be bold or brave enough to go out and meet. Getting inquiries is one thing,” he said. “But then after, you have to go out and present yourself to them. Don’t be afraid of it. Exports are easy, and there are agencies – both government and private – that can help.”