West Virginia Executive Spring/Summer 2020 | Page 79

Exporting in a Global Market
By Samantha Cart
The importance of exporting for businesses has perhaps never been
more obvious than it is in 2020. In the wake of a global pandemic
and subsequent economic decline, businesses engaged in the
global marketplace are often in better shape to weather the storm.
Industrial Bolting Technologies, Legacy Truck Centers and Nippon
Tungsten USA, Inc. have worked with the International Division of
the West Virginia Development Office to export their goods and
services to international markets, diversifying their portfolios and
increasing their bottom lines.
“I decided to expand into international business when we were
going through the recession in 2007. I didn’t want to be caught
with 100 percent of my business in one location anymore. We’re
currently doing 70 percent of our business in the U.S. and 30 percent
overseas, but our goal is to get to 50/50. We recently set up a new
distributor in Pakistan. Before that, we were already doing business
in about 30 other countries.”
– Mike McCown, President,
Industrial Bolting Technologies
“We have been working with the international division of the West
Virginia Development Office for almost 10 years, and they have
helped us with our international sales. We've done business in more
than 116 countries around the world. We wanted to diversify the
company from just our local market in the Ohio Valley. If there is an
economic issue in any one part of the world, we have customers in
other regions that may be doing better. Some West Virginia companies
may be hesitant to sell internationally because it is different, but
there is so much to be gained by going global.”
– Chad Remp, Director for International Sales & E-commerce,
Legacy Truck Centers
“Nippon Tungsten is part of the international markets in Canada,
Mexico and Japan. Exporting has benefitted us by expanding our
business/service to North and South America. It has also caused
a synergy effect with other affiliated companies on the global
business stage in Japan, China, Thailand, Brazil and Italy. Nippon
Tungsten opened a facility in Brazil in October 2019 to cover the
South American market. We have been expanding that network,
and it is now one of our strengths.”
– Hideki Watanabe, President, Nippon Tungsten USA, Inc. &
Kenji Nakahara, Ph.D., Director and Senior General Manager in
Machinery Parts Business Department, Nippon Tungsten Co., Ltd.
Congratulations,
Dr. White,
on being chosen
as a member of
the Sharp Shooters
Class of 2020.
We appreciate your commitment to the people
and communities of Southern West Virginia.
From your friends at:
WWW.WVEXECUTIVE.COM SPRING/SUMMER 2020 77