Lord Livingston’s Central European Diary – Day 5

The chequered flag in sight and Lord Livingston and team in pole position on GREAT opportunities in high growth CEE

Moving up a gear and onto the home straight of the GREAT CEE Megamission 2014 – there’s three things which come out of this whistle stop tour of this exciting region:

– The region as a whole offers a significant expansion opportunity for UK companies – we need to do all we can to catch up with our competitors

– As a brand we are well known but as a product we are not used – we need to change that

– We’re aligning our resources to make the most of the regional opportunity – that means communicating the local opportunities which exist and attracting companies out to market

Some GREAT discussions with Hungarian officials on the type and scale of the opportunity – energy, nuclear; infrastructure; retail; IT; healthcare – the opportunities are similar across the region but local attention to country specifics and detail are key.

I managed to catch up with the Lord at the Investor’s Forum where he was meeting a number of UK companies who have actively grown their business over here:

“ Nice to see Scotland and England both won their matches on Wednesday. It’s GREAT to be in Hungary. The message is similar across the region. There’s opportunity to double our sales here. At the regional level I’ve fixed my eyes on a 30 billion opportunity which is absolutely deliverable. Our trade teams are stepping up to the challenge and this region has a key role to play in delivering the UK’s 2020 targets”

The Minister was accompanied on his Hungarian visit by the representatives of 33 British companies – mainly small and medium sized companies -, that primarily operate in the sectors of energy, transport infrastructure (particularly railways), healthcare, life sciences, retail and IT security.

During his visit to Budapest Lord Livingston opened the new British Hungarian Business Centre a new addition to the UK’s frontline business development services in Budapest.

The British Business Center was officially launched today in partnership with the British Chamber of Commerce in Hungary (BCCH), UK Trade and Investment and the British Embassy. The new institution, opened by Zsuzsa Németh, Minister of National Development and Lord Livingston, UK Trade and Investment Minister, aims at strengthening bilateral trade relations between the UK and Hungary.

Lord Livingston emphasized during the Budapest grand opening: “Our aim is that every British business coming to Hungary has a seamless, quality end-to-end experience. Concretely, our vision is that by the end of 2018, with the contribution of the British Business Centre, the number of UK companies selling in the Hungarian market will double from 4700 to 9400. I am excited to be here at this landmark moment and to be able to launch the Centre. Today marks the beginning of a new chapter in UK-Hungary commerce and partnership.”

Vazul Tóth, Chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce in Hungary said: “The Chamber is happy to welcome the cooperation with the British Embassy and UKTI for the opening of the British Business Centre. More than 20 years of experience behind us in assisting British and Hungarian companies will greatly contribute in supporting the British companies that decide to step into the Hungarian market. It’s also one of our priorities to deliver tangible results by 2015. We firmly believe that the establishment of the centre will have a positive impact on the competitiveness of Hungary in the region as well.”

One of the major tasks of the newly opened institution – located in the recently renovated Eiffel Palace office building – is to offer support and information about business opportunities in Hungary and the region for British companies, mainly small and medium sized companies, interested in operating in the country. To this end it will assist companies by offering market research, organizing personal meetings, event management and IT infrastructure to corporations that intend to find potential business partners in Hungary for the development of their business.

Pounding the road for the last 5 days the GREAT Megamission 2014 is the biggest ever roadshow of UK companies to the high growth markets of Central Europe. It has been a GREAT introduction to the region and we are now looking forward to continue helping British companies do concrete business out here. If you didn’t make the mission that’s ok – we’re on hand and at your service to help you develop your business in this GREAT region. For more information on how we can help get in touch with martin.oxley@fco.gov.uk

GREAT Megamission 2014 – CEE a GREAT region – Come and see for yourself.