Trade fair man attacks board

By Yoke Har Lee

Norm Morgan, organiser of trade exhibitions and exporter, is a frustrated man. So frustrated that he does not care if he burns his bridges with the Trade Development Board, which he says works against those seen in competition with the board's agenda.

Mr Morgan's company, Tradex, has been around five years. He takes New Zealand companies to trade fairs overseas, particularly in the Middle East and, lately, in South America.

In the past month, he has taken what he describes as one of New Zealand's largest representations, of 12 companies, to attend a construction fair in Dubai.

He is also representing some Australian companies, which, he says, received 50 per cent funding from their Government.

He said he posted an application to Trade NZ for money under the export network programme run by the board, but received no reply.

In the past, he said, Trade NZ had lost an application he made.

"The reality is Trade NZ sees us as a problem. They don't like us doing the job because we are competing with it by organising exporters."

He also criticised Trade NZ's dual role of sympathetic deliverer of free Government services and fee-taking consultant.

Small and medium-scale companies, he said, had been treated badly so far. Many could not afford to attend trade fairs.

"It costs between $10,000 and $20,000 to put up a decent show at a trade fair overseas."

And many companies were afraid to use Trade NZ's services in case they were charged for the consultations.

The Business Development Board used to provide part-grants for companies seeking export opportunities.

That had been a source of business for him, as the companies spent the money on his services. But the board was now defunct and companies had to pay their own way, Mr Morgan said.

Trade NZ's manager for the engineering, construction and building services group, Tim Harris, said Trade NZ was no longer involved in trade fairs.

"The only thing we do is to help by way of establishing the New Zealand Way brand."

He was aware of the second application put in by Mr Morgan.

"By the time we received the application, Norm had already left with the exporters. We also did not have a chance to meet the exporters concerned. The forms were filled in a manner that did not comply with our requirements."

Trade NZ intended to meet Mr Morgan to discuss ways to help the companies form a strategy.