A cross-country effort led to sales for a company in New Mexico. Originating in Montana, a trade lead eventually made its way to Red Mountain Arsenal in Roswell, New Mexico. RMA coordinated with their local office and overseas specialists to complete the deal in Malaysia.

RDO Equipment Company, established in 1968, is a world-leading North Dakota-based dealer of John Deere tractors and machinery. A recent engagement with the U.S. Commercial Service in North Dakota led to a discussion of opportunities in South America, which eventually led to an export sale to Chile.

Dennis Simmons has spent almost 20 years with the Foreign Commercial Service, a branch of the U.S. Commercial Service. A part-time New Hampshire resident, part-time globe trotter, Simmons has lived around the world and worked with US rural businesses to broker partnerships with international firms. Hear from him about his experience with FCS, as well as how rural Americans can pursue this career path and why they should consider it.

Websites are the cornerstone of business, no matter if a company is located in the center of a metro area or hours away from any cities in a small town. The U.S. Commercial Service offers Website Globalization Reviews (WGR) as a tool to help companies measure how internationally friendly their websites are and to give concrete steps to help them improve. The REC specifically performs WGRs for rural states. The Kansas Department of Commerce has narrowed in on this service as a key way for rural companies to remain competitive and has provided funding for several companies to utilize this service.  

Rural Export Center and North Dakota Office Director Heather Ranck was awarded the William E. Morton Memorial Award by the U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration (ITA) on December 16, 2021. The William E. Morton Award is awarded to the ITA employee who has made the strongest contribution during the past year to increase opportunities, within ITA or the U.S. International trading community, for members of historically disadvantaged groups. Heather Ranck was a recipient of this award due to her outstanding service while working with rural and underserved communities.

The Rural Export Center is seeking applications for a Part-Time Market Research Assistant position.

The Virtual Part-Time Market Research Assistant will work to deliver high-quality, thorough market research for clients. They will also provide regular reports and updates to the Market Research Program Manager as well as support other assigned duties such as website reviews and training initiatives. The Part-Time Market Research Assistant has the option to work remotely.

For more information and to apply for the Part-Time Research Assistant position, click here.

The research team has grown with the hiring of part-time Rural Export Center (REC) Market Research Assistant Sitara Sandhu. Sitara was raised in Pennsylvania and is currently a junior at Temple University where she is a member of the Honors Program. She is studying International Relations with a focus in Security and minoring in Political Science. Sitara's career interests include foreign affairs, security, defense, and diplomacy.