Washington Business Summer 2019 | Washington Business | Page 30

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Commerce in Japan also participated in the weeklong event, which included many policy discussions. Hands
down, this was successful international diplomacy driven by Washington state’s oldest business association. It’s
also likely AWB’s first trade mission to Asia in the association’s 115-year history. And it expands AWB’s role as an
advocate for Washington employers beyond the state’s borders.
Alex McGregor of The McGregor Company commended AWB for engaging on international trade, which is
critical for Washington agricultural products, especially wheat.
“These issues with Japan are really crucial,” McGregor said. “We’ve spent three generations, 60 years, building
relationships, with the Japanese government and Japanese millers and groceries. It’s at risk now because we
walked away from a tariff reduction program called the Trans-Pacific Partnership in which we played a key role.”
He also highlighted the time spent meeting leaders from both countries.
“It was an honor to connect with our Japanese friends and colleagues in person,” AWB President Kris Johnson
said. “We’re also very grateful for the warm and generous hospitality we received from the government of Japan
and the Japanese people during our trip.”
business and baseball
Planning for the historic trip began last winter when the Seattle Mariners invited AWB to attend a two-day season
opener in Tokyo. Major League Baseball scheduled the games between the Mariners and the Oakland A’s. Alaska
Airlines and Japan Airlines (JAL) partnered in transportation.
Johnson and AWB Board Chair Schauer quickly realized that while
baseball is a serious business in Washington and Japan, the ties between
these partners are much bigger than that.
Washington state exported more than $6 billion in goods and services
to Japan in 2018, making it the state’s third-largest trading partner behind
At A Glance
Canada and China. Likewise, Washington bought $6.2 billion in Japanese
goods, which means it’s one of the largest markets in the United States for
AWB formed a broad coalition of public and
Japanese products.
private partners to go on a trade mission to
And the relationship goes back centuries, long before statehood in 1889.
Japan in March.
The Lady Washington was the first American ship to make landfall on the
island in 1791. It carried otter pelts from the Pacific Northwest.
Partners included the Seattle Mariners,
Today, Washington exports include aircraft, hay, frozen french fries,
Greater Seattle Partners, the Japan-America
seafood and soft white winter wheat from the Eastern part of the state.
Society of the state of Washington and the
Imports from Japan include transportation equipment, computers and
Japan Business Association of Seattle, as
well as the Washington state Departments of
electronics, machinery and appliances.
Commerce and Agriculture.
AWB Board Chair Tim Schauer and President
Kris Johnson led the 35-member delegation.
The schedule included detailed policy
discussions on the Trans-Pacific Partnership,
infrastructure, agriculture and the 2020
Summer Olympics.
Mariners right fielder Ichiro Suzuki announced
his retirement after a game in Tokyo.
30 association of washington business
traveling coalition
Over the next few months, AWB helped organize a coalition that included
the Washington State Department of Commerce and Greater Seattle
Partners, as well as the Japan-America Society of the State of Washington
and the Japan Business Association of Seattle.
AWB’s events team assembled high-quality policy discussions, tours and
briefings.
“It was an exceptional itinerary,” Johnson said. “Our events team should
be commended.”
On Tuesday, March 20, the delegation was welcomed at a briefing dinner
at the New Otani Hotel by officials from Japan Airlines, Alaska Airlines and
The Boeing Company.