35 years- A proud history, our promising future
This year, TFO Canada is celebrating its 35th anniversary! With over three decades of trade promotion activities, TFO Canada’s services for Canadian buyers have evolved to meet the changing dynamics of international trade. What remains consistent is our dedication to helping Canadian buyers find new sourcing partners across the developing world. Take a walk with us down memory lane as we recall some of the turning points in our improved service delivery to Canadian buyers.
The First Buyer’s Mission
THEN:
In 1983, TFO Canada hosted its first international buyer’s mission to five ASEAN countries with a focus on the furniture industry. The delegation comprised a team of TFO Canada staff, Revenue Canada tariff specialist, and three Canadian retail importers. Following this success, our missions in the 1980s brought Canadian buyers to Colombia, Peru, Guatemala, China, Hong Kong, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Turkey.
NOW:
Today, we continue to take Canadian buyers on trade missions and promote benefits for buyers’ to attend our partners’ trade shows, including the upcoming Costa Rica Buyer’s Trade Mission. TFO Canada has expanded its portfolio across the developing world, connecting Canadian buyers with exporters from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Caribbean and Latin America.
Trade Promotion – From Paper to Digital
THEN:
TFO Canada obtained its first word processor in 1983, its first fax machine in 1985, and launched its first website in 1996. In the early years, exporters hand wrote and mimeographed letters looking for contacts in the Canadian import community. Before the Internet, staff visited libraries for directories and mailed away for membership lists of Canadian importers.
NOW:
Today, staff benefit from nearly real-time communication (despite time differences!) made possible by e-mail, web conferencing and online collaborative tools, which have strengthened our relationships at home and across the globe.
Suppliers – From Catalogues to Online Database
THEN:
TFO Canada launched the first edition of Flash! in 1991, a regular magazine profiling export offers from client countries. This publication ran for nearly a decade, giving a “Madison avenue” touch with colourful and evocative promotions that would catch the imagination of Canadian buyers from coast to coast.
NOW:
In 2006, TFO Canada launched its online Supplier Database, allowing Canadian buyers to easily search for exporters in their product category, including information on company size, export experience, product offers and pictures. To date over 8,000 product offers have been added to this database, a number that keeps growing every day.What are the results?
Read one Canadian buyer’s sourcing success from Burkina Faso.
The Way Forward
Our mandate of confronting the challenge of global poverty by promoting sustainable economic development through trade is still very relevant in 2015. This is especially true given how much Canada’s international trade landscape has changed based on the number of agreements we have signed, with the first free bilateral trade agreement coming into force with the United States in January 1989. Looking ahead, you can count on TFO Canada to continue to be your sourcing partner in developing countries.