Vietnam trade mission delegates pose with Columbiana County, state and local officials and representatives of the Columbiana County Port Authority and the Ohio Small Business Development Center Export Assistance Network of Youngstown State University during a visit Monday to the Global Investment Hub in Leetonia. The contingent also had lunch and visited the port’s Wellsville Intermodal facility. Plans for the rest of the week include tours of Humtown’s new location in Boardman, a tour of Haltec at the World Trade Park in Leetonia and lunch at Das Dutch Haus in Columbiana. (Photo by Mary Ann Greier)

LEETONIA — Learning about new opportunities for international companies in Columbiana County, the valley and Ohio — that’s the mission for a trade delegation visiting from Vietnam this week.

“We would like to learn about the culture,” Tran Ngoc Dao of the Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Vietnam said.

Dao serves as vice director of the International Relations Department of the Vietnam chamber in Ho Chi Minh City, which boasts more than 5,000 members. She and representatives of seven different companies from Vietnam toured the Global Investment Hub in Leetonia and the Wellsville Intermodal Facility on Monday as part of a four-day trade mission that includes stops in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties.

Dao explained that a visit like this helps them to know more about Ohio and what it takes to run a business here. They also wanted the opportunity to learn about the culture and life.

“Our hope is to increase the imports and exports between the two countries,” Columbiana County Port Authority Executive Director/CEO Penny Traina said.

Another hope is to attract foreign companies to take advantage of the Global Investment Hub, which gives companies a chance to sort of try out the area without a lot of investment, with a goal of having the companies decide to put down more permanent roots perhaps at the World Trade Park industrial park in Leetonia or another nearby location in the county or state.

Traina called the visit an outstanding opportunity to give back to the Vietnam delegation the same experience that she, county Commissioner Michael Halleck and others received during a 2019 trade mission to Ho Chi Minh City where they were welcomed with open arms.

CCPA operates both the Global Investment Hub at the Leetonia Industrial Building owned by CCPA on Cherry Fork and the World Trade Park, site of the industrial park off of state Route 344 inside the village. The port also operates the Wellsville Intermodal Facility on Clark Avenue, Wellsville.

The Ohio SBDC Assistance Network at Youngstown State University is hosting the trade mission in collaboration with the Ho Chi Minh City Chamber of Commerce in partnership with YSU, the YSU Williamson College of Business Administration, Ohio SBDC Export Assistance Network, Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber, CCPA, Lake to River Economic Development and Rickenbacker International Airport located in Columbus. Bryan Schreiber, manager, Air Cargo business development at Rickenbacker attended and was one of the people who went with Traina and Halleck in 2019.

The trade mission kicked off with an opening ceremony at YSU and will include a panel discussion on Ohio’s economic development today at YSU, along with business to business matchmaking sessions and a Trumbull Industries presentation, tour and dinner in Warren. Several tours and presentations are planned Wednesday at Kundel in Vienna, Sam’s Club in Warren, lunch at the Eastwood Mall in Niles, tour of Giant Eagle in Warren and Past Times Arcade in Girard.

On Thursday, the delegation will visit and tour the new Humtown location in Boardman, then return to Columbiana County to tour Haltec at the World Trade Park in Leetonia, lunch at Das Dutch Haus and tour Discover Global in North Lima.

Leetonia Mayor Kevin Siembida thanked the Vietnam trade delegation for coming to the village. He said a few years ago, “we set out on a journey. How can we transform our community, our county, our state.”

He thanked Traina and others in the room for everything.

“We are beginning to become a community and a region that is going to focus and develop trade, business and network together,” he said.

After the presentation, he added, “I love that the delegation chose to come to Leetonia. We are trying to position ourselves to be a global hub for business.”

Mousa Kassis, director of the Ohio Small Business Development Center Export Assistance Network at Youngstown State University, gave a very detailed overview of what Ohio and the county has to offer international companies thinking about locating in the United States, including access to major highways, lake ports, river ports, international airports and the rail network. He noted that the Global Investment Hub is a one-day drive from 65 percent of the U.S. population and a five-hour drive from 65 percent of the Canadian population.

Companies who make a deal to become part of the Global Investment Hub will receive one year of free rent, access to Wi-Fi and furnished office space. They have to employ a YSU intern for an academic year. After one year, companies can stay at the Global Investment Hub for a lease of $400 per month. They can opt to purchase or lease a building from CCPA in close proximity. Another option is to purchase land from the CCPA to build in Leetonia’s shovel-ready industrial park. Or they can locate somewhere else in Ohio.

Kassis also traveled with Traina and Halleck to Vietnam in 2019 and when he learned a delegation was coming from Vietnam to the United States, he convinced them to come here. He said he loves Columbiana County.

“They respond to the business opportunities that are out there like no other county in northeast Ohio,” he said.

Other speakers during the event at the Global Investment Hub besides Traina, Kassis and Siembida included Columbiana County Commissioner Roy Paparodis, state Rep. Monica Robb Blasdel, state Sen. Al Cutrona and CCPA Assistant Executive Director Brittany Smith, who explained everything the CCPA has to offer. Paparodis, Blasdel and Cutrona all offered their assistance to members of the Vietnam delegation and touched on the importance of relationships and being pro-business and helping companies succeed. Others in attendance included county Commissioner Tim Weigle and Julie Needs, director of the Sustainable Opportunity Development Center in Salem.

As a parting gift, Traina, her staff and the CCPA represented by board Chairman Charlie Presley, gave each member of the Vietnam delegation a compass.

“Life is a journey and not a destination and may you always find your way,” Traina said.

mgreier@mojonews.com