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Promoting business opportunities to the US
06/04/2009
Scotland is 'open and ready for business' is the clear message the Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon will be delivering to companies across the United States during Scotland Week.
Throughout her American programme Ms Sturgeon will focus on opportunities the Scottish government is creating to make Scotland a leading business destination, promoting confidence in the Scottish economy and Scotland as a nation, and developing new relationships in this year of Homecoming.
Ms Sturgeon will meet with senior decision makers from American companies from the West to the East Coasts - either in their role as key existing investors, Globalscots doing all they can to promote Scotland, or where they have the potential to invest in Scotland, both now and in the future.
Among the companies Ms Sturgeon will meet are Zoom and LifeScan. Zoom is a global project development and management company with a wide breadth of expertise in engineering and design in a variety of sectors including solar and other renewable projects. LifeScan is a wholly owned subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson and is one of the world's leading makers of blood glucose monitoring products.
Speaking ahead of a series of critical business meetings with key decision makers, Ms Sturgeon said:
"I am taking a clear message to companies and business leaders in the USA that Scotland is very much open and ready for business. In the face of a global economic downturn we are determined to up the pace on our economic strategy, making Scotland more productive, investing in skills, and developing our world leading research base to find new products and processes, placing Scotland in the best position to benefit from the upturn when it comes.
"Maintaining existing jobs, as well as creating new employment opportunities, is also vitally important in the current economic climate, and the Scottish Government, along with colleagues at SDI, will do all we can to stimulate fresh investment, building on our economic recovery programme.
"That's why it is crucial to meet businesses like Zoom and LifeScan to drive that agenda and make clear the real competitive advantages of investing in, and continuing to do business in, Scotland."
Zia Malik, President and CEO of Zoom Diversified, a Silicon Valley company, said:
"We are pleased to have the opportunity to meet with the Deputy First Minister and discuss the company's plans to establish the largest solar photo-voltaic panel manufacturing plant of its kind in Scotland."
Ron Jerdonek, LifeScan's worldwide head of research and development, who will be meeting Nicola Sturgeon at the company's headquarters in California said:
"We welcome a visit from the Deputy First Minister. We're excited about the opportunity to continue to partner with Scottish Development International to offer more solutions to people with diabetes."
The full list of companies the Deputy First Minister will meet during Scotland Week are:
- San Francisco (Monday April 6 and Tuesday April 7) - Geron, Zoom, LifeScan, Chevron Corporation, National Semiconductor, Sun Microsystems
- Seattle (Wednesday April 8) - Microsoft, Boeing, and SDI Business Reception; New York (Friday April 10) - Johnson & Johnson
Ms Sturgeon will also deliver a speech at Stanford University on life sciences and the key science links between Stanford and Scottish Universities.
In New York (Thursday April 9) Ms Sturgeon will attend the SDI Business Reception at Saks on 5th Avenue, promoting Scotland's textile sector. This event will be attended by some of Scotland's leading textile fashion companies - including Johnston's of Elgin and Belinda Robertson.
Scottish Development International will also increase their programme of trade missions and delegations in the coming year which will aim to secure over £100 million sales from the Americas market.