By Kristin Atwan
With the addition of Texas, Wisconsin and West Virginia, a total of nine states have confirmed the availability of grants to qualified companies to participate in the SEMA Middle East Business Development Conference, to be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), March 28–April 1, 2017.
The program includes a turnkey booth at the Custom Show Emirates, four nights’ hotel and meals. The state funds are in addition to the $900 provided by the federal U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration.
States confirmed to have funds to defray participation costs include:
- Arizona
- California
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Nebraska
- Ohio
- Texas
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
2017 SEMA Middle East Business Development Conference event schedule:
- March 28: Briefing with U.S. government officials, buyer panel.
- March 29: Visit accessory, performance and off-road retailers and wholesalers. Evening networking event with buyers.
- March 30: SEMA section at the Custom Show Emirates open only to pre-vetted trade buyers.
- March 31: SEMA measuring session demonstration. SEMA section open to all.
- April 1: Options: Exhibit for an additional day, private meetings with buyers, depart for the United States.
View a copy of the 2016 SEMA Middle East post-show report.
Watch a video of the 2016 trip.
Read the flyer for the 2017 trip.
Register now for the 2017 SEMA Middle East Business Development Conference.
To learn more about all of SEMA’s overseas trips, including the March 28–April 1 trip to the Middle East, the May 23–27 SEMA Business Development Program to Australia and the September trip to China, contact Linda Spencer at lindas@sema.org.