Business is GREAT

The British Embassy always enjoyed a close relationship with the British Hellenic Chamber of Commerce and has been supportive of its objective to enhance trade relations between the two countries. To this end, for the second year running, the Embassy and the BHCC combined forces for this New Year reception and traditional pitta cutting which the British Ambassador kindly agreed to host at his Residence on 18 January 2012. The reception for the BHCC members in Greece’s second city Thessaloniki was also jointly organized at the MET hotel on 9 February.

Over 450 guests from the Greek business community attended both events in Athens and in Thessaloniki. It was an ideal opportunity to network and exchange views and also to find out more about our initiatives for 2012. In his welcome address the Ambassador stressed the close links between Greece and the UK and added that Britain is playing an active role in trying to address the challenges of growth and competitiveness. British companies are committed to the Greek market. They are still very much present, with some having strengthened their links with Greek counterparts. He went on  saying that there are people who are unemployed around Greece who could have jobs  now if only some major projects funded by British interests were to get the go ahead: 2012 should be the year in which these projects, which have been on the drawing board for years, should come to fruition. The Ambassador concluded his address by explaining why 2012 is an important year for Britain too. He said: ‘We have the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and we have the Diamond Jubilee, 60 years on the throne, of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. It’s a year full of GREAT opportunities for GREAT BRITAIN, which is why we’ve encapsulated the GREAT element in a campaign which will focus on everything the UK has to offer as one of the very best places to visit, study, work, invest and do business. It will allow Britain to speak with one voice about the opportunities to invest and do business in the UK and help to attract millions of extra visitors’.  

As Head of the Commercial/UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) team of the Embassy in Athens, I believe that these two events played a key role in introducing the core messages of this campaign, giving to Greek businessmen a flavour of what’s in store. But what does the GREAT campaign essentially mean for international businesses from all over the world? It is designed to attract international firms to Britain by building a single recognisable brand and using this year’s keynote events to promote key business activities. The GREAT campaign will further demonstrate to these companies how it can support British business partnerships around the world, helping people to do business with, invest in and visit Britain.  

London 2012 will have much to offer everyone, including some big business opportunities.   We believe that the Games are estimated to be worth some £21 billion to the UK economy, in business and tourist revenue; London 2012 will also be a showcase of UK expertise, including global business networking opportunities, both real and virtual.   Some of the business activity will be Athens based. We will therefore be linking in a series of London 2012 Global Business Summits between July and September with a programme of links to London seminars on specific sectors from advanced manufacturing and, automotive and aerospace, to creative industries, energy, infrastructure and construction, life sciences, technology and telecoms.

In addition, I’d like to invite you to join our new UKTI British Business Club, which will be an important element of the UK’s Olympic programme. The Club brings together UK and overseas businesses to network, identify business opportunities and develop partnerships. Companies can register online for free.

The UKTI team in the British Embassy in Athens plans to involve Greek companies in all the above activities which will run beyond the Games timeframes. We would like to engage as many Greek companies as possible in these initiatives and encourage you to talk to us.  I would like to conclude by adding that as the business world knows best there are always opportunities in crises. Come and talk to us about some GREAT ideas. We are here to help.