On June 6th the Belgian American Chamber of the South (BACoS), a business-oriented chamber covering an eight-state region of the Southeast, will facilitate the Belgian economic mission to Atlanta. Belgium has a long tradition of doing business in the American South, and a key objective of this mission will be to assist the Belgian executives in networking with Georgia business leaders and executives from the rest the Southeast – in particular South and North Carolina - to promote business, trade and investment opportunities. The mission will include over 300 Belgian companies operating successful businesses in industries covering pharma, food, polymers, processing, cybersecurity, specialty chemicals, IT, engineering and many other sectors. Her Royal Highness, Princess Astrid, Representative of the King of Belgium, will spearhead the economic delegation, accompanied by His Excellency David Clarinval, His Excellency Jan Jambon, His Excellency Willy Borsus and His Excellency Pascal Smet. Following the visit to Atlanta, the Delegation will continue on to New York and Boston.
“This visit will mark a historic occasion for Atlanta as this Belgian trade delegation will be the largest to have visited the city in decades. BACoS wants to make a positive impression on the many Belgian companies participating in this economic mission. We especially want to honor Her Royal Majesty during her visit to the South, leaving her and the participants with fond memories of our Southern hospitality, our cuisine, the “can-do” atmosphere, and the South’s economic might. BACoS will organize two events: a breakfast session highlighting successful Belgian investment location stories and offering a guide on how to start up U.S. operations, and a prestigious ‘Walking Dinner’ event in the evening to promote networking between companies already in the Southeast and these Belgian companies interested in vesting in the U.S.” - Brigitte Peleman-Vantieghem, President BACoS BACoS is grateful for the support of the Georgia Department of Economic Development as a hospitality sponsor, as well as the generous support from the South Carolina Department of Commerce, Mohawk Industries, UCB and Solvay, the main sponsors for the ‘Walking Dinner’. Special recognition goes out to the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce who helped make this event possible, as well as to King & Spalding for hosting in their beautiful venue, Medici International for sponsoring the wine and Halfway Crooks for sponsoring the beer.
The menu will be a mix of Belgian high end cuisine by Chef Phillipe Haddad and southern topnotch dishes by Chef Nyiasia Bratcher of King & Spalding. BACoS would also like to thank the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belgium, Flanders Investment & Trade, the Wallonia Export-Investment Agency (AWEX) and hub.brussels for teaming up with us and making this an event the highlight of our Belgian guests’ visit.
Many partners in the Southeast were eager to help make this a great success. BACoS is looking forward to showing our visitors the great possibilities of the country’s fastest growing region.
For more information on the Belgian American Chamber of the South: Contact: Bram Vandenbroucke – Executive Director Belgian American of the South info@bacos.us