Scotland's Economy

Showcasing Scotland in Korea

April 20, 2012 by John Swinney MSP No Comments | Category Exports

The final day of my trip to Korea begins with a media conference to explain the purpose of the trip – to pursue Korean investment and to promote Scottish business interests. I am accompanied by Frank Boyland and Howard Jang (both of SDI in Asia), Adrian Gillespie (Energy Director of Scottish Enterprise) and Ewen Cameron (SDI Head of Food, Drink and Textiles).

We set out the opportunities in renewable energy, food and drink sales and in textiles promotion. It is a long and engaged discussion and will hopefully lead to some positive reflection on the visit.

We then moved on to a series of meetings with individual companies which I am very confident will lead to further investment in Scotland in due course.

In a couple of discussions with major retail networks the possibility is opened up of opportunities to present on premium Scottish food, drink and textiles which is hugely exciting.

I met with Doosan and was very pleased that their President, Mr Geewon Park, reiterated the company’s commitment to working in Scotland as a significant location for our business.

I set out how Scotland presents very real investment opportunities and Doosan made clear they continue to consider future investments in Scotland.

The final event of my trip was a Scottish Night dinner with many of our investors and target companies. After speeches from the UK Ambassador, Scott Wightman and from me, a whisky tasting led by Macallan was very popular. The video images they showed of Craigellachie warmly reminded me of the beautiful country I have the privilege to serve.

Home tomorrow. Thanks in Korea to Howard Jang, our one man band in the country who put together an outstanding programme. I look forward to building on the relationships forged during this trip.

Tags: food and drink, investment opportunities, Korea, Korean investment, Scottish Enterprise, SDI

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