International Division
The WVDED International Division works with international companies from around the globe to help them establish facilities in West Virginia .
The division ’ s team contains experts with experience in many different fields . Their focuses include site selection assistance , loan program assistance , labor force recruitment , employee training programs , tax credits and tax increment financing and tourism development and attraction . Included on the team ’ s staff is a group of multilingual representatives who assist with international communication .
Aside from its West Virginia office , the International Division also has locations in Europe and Japan . The West Virginia Europe office is location in Zurich , Switzerland , and is the main point of contact for any European companies looking to expand to West Virginia . The West Virginia Japan office is located in Nagoya and works with investors and companies in the process of expanding to the U . S .
Through the hard work of the International Division , over 136 companies from 30 countries have chosen to open a facility in West Virginia . Businesses in the state have also exported goods to over 140 countries with the help of the division ’ s Export Promotion Program , which provides export counseling , organizes participation in trade shows and missions and connects exporters with service providers . The services offered by the program help to provide the base for companies to expand internationally .
Business Attraction
West Virginia is full of advantageous amenities that can be beneficial to many businesses . From prime locations for business relocation and expansion to a wide array of tourism opportunities , the state offers a myriad of resources beneficial to growing companies .
The WVDED Business Attraction team works to promote these assets to businesses and market West Virginia as a solid place to grow . Through its work , the team aims to boost the state ’ s economy by forming partnerships with new and diverse clients .
The team ’ s main focuses are providing site selection assistance to businesses seeking suitable locations , offering support with loan programs , labor force recruitment services , assistance with tax credit or tax increment finance options and promoting tourism development and attraction .
Through its marketing campaigns , partnerships and personalized assistance efforts , the Business Attraction team showcases all that the Mountain State has to offer , fostering innovation and sustainability as new businesses thrive in West Virginia .
its duties range from prioritizing small businesses in West Virginia to forming and maintaining relationships with companies overseas .
While the WVDED caters to many different economic sectors , it tries not to focus on just one when strategizing how to drive economic growth . Instead , it tries to market the state across a wide range of growing businesses .
“ A key element of any successful economy is the opportunity for citizens to pursue a wide and virtually unlimited array of careers ,” says Mitch Carmichael , secretary of economic development for the WVDEC . “ As the many new and existing companies accelerate the economic renaissance occurring in West Virginia , our focus is to facilitate the synergy necessary for a dynamic flywheel of strong and enduring job creation .”
Graney says the state ’ s leaders , legislature , governor and federal and local leadership all work together to make the office more effective and give the state a competitive advantage . With so many eyes that value West Virginia ’ s success looking over the development office ’ s projects and coming up with ideas as a team , success is inevitable .
“ You want to make something happen quickly ? Because of our collaboration and communication , we can get all the stakeholders together to make an impact and work things out more quickly than we ever have in the past ,” Graney says .
Aside from being a great place to grow a business , West Virginia has many products valuable to places all around
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