BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) – About a dozen Belgian technology companies are holding two days of meetings with local companies and leaders to explore potential business opportunities in Texas.
According to the Brazos Valley Economic Development Corporation, the businesses are from the Wallonia region of Belgium, and their visit was led by the Walloon Export and Foreign Investment Agency (AWEX).
The purpose behind the trip is to highlight the advantages of doing business in Texas and, specifically, the Brazos Valley.
“We’ve got a great university with great intellectual property, great talent, and we want to do business,” said Bryan Mayor Andrew Nelson. “If you want to launch a business from Belgium and go into New York City, you don’t know where to begin. Here, we’ve got an international gateway which takes people by the hand, shows them how to start the business.”
Nelson has a personal connection to these technology companies.
“Back in 2010 I worked with the Texas A&M University System and Lisam Systems in Belgium to start the first Belgium company relationship here in the Brazos Valley and we started Lisam America. From that, the international gateway developed between Texas A&M and Wallonia, the French-speaking area of Belgium. It’s been an amazing relationship for everyone involved.”
For Philippe Lachapelle, Director of Technical Partnerships and Networks of Innovation at AWEX, the Brazos Valley community is also a major advantage for these companies.
“That’s what we are telling them is that they will have a partner,” said Lachapelle. “The Brazos Valley has been an extraordinary partner for us over the years and we cannot thank them enough. It’s not only the university, it’s Brazos Valley. It’s the Economic Development Corporation who understands.”
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