By Maxine Shapiro, KERA 90.1 business commentator
Dallas, TX – See what happens when you have a little downturn in the economy? Imaginations have to get fired, communities have to and want to come together, resulting in positive forward action. I'm Maxine Shapiro with KERA Marketplace Middays.
A few weeks ago, after months of planning, the Greater Dallas Chamber and the Fort Worth Chamber officially joined forces. This new regional brand is titled "Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex - the where with all." The mayors of Fort Worth and Dallas launched this new regional brand with a first-time-ever joint trade mission to Montreal, Canada last week. And "very successful" is what Sharon Venable, VP of international business development of the Greater Dallas Chamber, conveyed to me this morning.
The solid accomplishments may be weeks away, but in the short term, some concrete successes of the mission can already be tallied. As a promotional mission, business and government leaders in the Montreal area learned of the innumerous benefits of establishing businesses in North Texas. I should say here, that 40-plus communities besides Dallas and Fort Worth are participating in this regional branding. The very size of this market, the low cost of doing business here, easy access to transportation, not to mention the attractive cost of living, was all emphasized to lure our Canadian friends into a warmer territory.
But as Ms. Venable described those three days in Montreal, I sensed a lot more was learned on our behalf. Montreal was excited and willing to show Mayors Miller and Barr how they grew into international status, something North Texas is anxious to become. For example, what a suburb there is doing to attract new start-ups as well as expand their biotech sector. And how Montreal is pleasingly surprised with a new budding industry in the entertainment business, movie production.
So hurray for the regional efforts of these North Texas leaders. There is always a silver lining to every dark economy. I'm Maxine Shapiro with KERA Marketplace Middays.
Marketplace Midday Reports air on KERA 90.1 Monday - Friday at 1:04 p.m. To contact Maxine Shapiro, please send emails to mshapiro@kera.org.