By Clark Byron
Photography by Colin Douglas Gray

SEDA’s World Trade Center Savannah is on the Move. More than 40 years ago, the World Trade Association was founded in New York City, the brainchild of David Rockefeller. Its primary purpose was to foster international trade around the world, and since then more than 320 World Trade Centers have been established worldwide. Now Savannah’s own WTC is joining the global community.

In 2011, through the efforts of SEDA (Savannah Economic Development Association), the Hostess City began looking into becoming a WTC location. With Savannah’s coastal location and busy port, combined with access to major highways and rail routes, hosting a WTC seemed like the logical choice—and who better to run it than SEDA, the business development force for Savannah and Chatham County with a mission to expand the region’s existing economic base by growing, attracting and developing new business opportunities in the area.

With so many key local firms seeking international trade, and being the East Coast’s busiest container port, second only to New York, offshore markets and worldwide trade hold inestimable promise for Chatham County. After a four-month fact-finding process, the decision was made to invest the initial $200,000, plus $10,000 in annual dues, to move forward with the WTC project.

Success wasn’t long in coming. In June, Hussey, Gay, Bell & DeYoung, a Savannah-based engineering and architecture company, was seeking new international markets and capitalized on Savannah’s burgeoning world trade capabilities to make the process easier. They soon struck pay dirt in Turkey, the world’s second-fastest-growing economy. WTC Savannah not only facilitated meetings with the right people for Hussey, they also helped bring Hussey up to speed with Turkish business culture.

“Hussey, Gay, Bell & DeYoung has a history of doing business internationally,” says Brynn Grant, SEDA vice president for competitive business and WTC Savannah. “They have expertise in international business development, so they were kind of our sweet spot of companies we would work with initially.” Companies that have done business overseas previously are in a better position to value and evaluate WTC’s fledgling services.

The WTC informed Hussey of an overseas event the state was planning to participate in, called TurkeyBuild, an exhibition held in Istanbul. Hussey indicated interest in exploring opportunities in the expanding country.

For the entire story, see the current issue of South Magazine on shelves now at these local retailers.