Wrapping up our China Ready to Export Program with our final event on the 31st of May, the China Awards Night was a fantastic turnout of well over 60 people which included special guests: the Mayors of Gawler and Barossa, local government officials and Mr Dan van Holst Pellekaan MP. Everyone gathered to celebrate the conclusion of our China Ready to Export Program, listen to the results of the Shandong Mission from the SA President of Australia China Business Council, Sean Kennihan and a discussion with a panel of experts as well as some very special presentations by Lijun Li and Steve White.
The Night started off with business networking while everyone was arriving. Utilizing a cleverly devised sticker system, people were able to network with people who are interested in exporting, who had already started exporting and people who were interested in investing. This was an excellent way to easily connect people with a similar interest and hopefully create some great business connections.
RDA Barossas Elena Shchepina welcomed everyone and presented attendees with an overview of the entire program including some results of the program that were available at the time.
Sean Kennihan gave an overview of the current state of China’s economy and the impact of China on our economy and tourism, the recently launched SASD Connect – B2B platform (which connects Australian SMEs and Chinese business people), highlights of China’s 5-year plan. Sean engaged guests with some laughs while conducting a serious discussion on how we need to keep up with China and grab at the opportunity to export.
A panel of experts consisting of;
- Craig Katz, CEO of Purus-Group,
- Henry Inat, Town of Gawler CEO,
- Karen Redman, Mayor of Town of Gawler,
- Bob Sloane, Mayor of the Barossa,
- Anne Moroney, CEO RDA Barossa,
- Brian Carr, Light Regional Council CEO,
- Rolf Binder, Rolf Binder Wines.
shared their experiences of the Shandong Mission, highlighting some of the outcomes that were currently available as it will be some time before full impact of this year’s mission will be realised.
Rolf Binder shared a invaluable insight into how he started exporting his wine to China and Craig Katz from Purus Group shared some details about the exporting process and overview of Asian markets.
An Awards Presentation followed giving the participants of the program recognition for completing the entire China Ready to Export Program and making substantial progress into getting their business ready to export into China. The Awards were presented to the participants by Mayor Sloane and Mayor Redman.
During a break in formalities guests enjoyed some beautiful music performed by “Wave Oriental”. The band used traditional Chinese instruments called the Ehru and Lute. It was a wonderful experience to listen to and enjoy.
After the break, Lijun gave a presentation on the results of a research project exploring the tourism preferences of Chinese visitors. The project looked at the impact of Chinese Tourism in the Barossa Region and what could be improved to increase this market.
To end the evening, Stephen White from Georama gave an enlightening presentation, turning the Barossa into a Virtual Reality ready region for advertising abroad, particularly in China. He gave a demonstration on how the platform would look and what advantages there would be for the region.
The event was a massive hit, packed full of interesting presentations, that provided the perfect conclusion for the China Ready to Export Program.
Now it is up to local businesses to use the knowledge gained to begin their journey into exporting.
For a PDF of the China Ready to Export Program Overview CLICK HERE
To View “Insights into Business in China” a video about the program participants CLICK HERE
For a PDF of Stephen White’s (Georama) presentation “Digital Barossa” CLICK HERE
Video demo version of Digital Barossa platform coming soon
“Tourism Preferences of Chinese Visitor’s” to view report CLICK HERE
SASD Connect – Australia China B2B Platform for SMEs www.sasdconnect.com.au
Australia China Business Council www.acbc.com.au