Texas, America's second-largest state and second-most populous state (after Alaska and California, respectively) has been making slow but steady inroads into the Asian economy. In 2011, for example, the Office of the United States Trade Representative praised Texas' high trade volume with the Asia-Pacific region, stating:
"Texas’s goods exports in 2010 totaled $207 billion, the largest figure of the 50 states. Of Texas’s total exports, $137 billion, or 66 percent, went to markets in the Asia-Pacific region. The top three product categories to APEC member economies exported in 2010 were computer and electronic products, chemicals, and machinery."
In addition to increasing trade with Asia, Texas companies are also establishing outposts and overseas branches in various Asian countries. In 2013, Kimberly-Clark, a Dallas-based Fortune 500 company that produces many familiar household products such as Kleenex facial tissue and Huggies diapers, was ranked #6 in Fortune/Great Place to Work's list of "The World's Best Multinational Workplaces." This is the third year that Kimberly-Clark, which includes facilities in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam, among other countries, has received this honor. Other major Texas companies to build branches and facilities in Asia include Exxon Mobil, Texas Instruments, and Commercial Metals, among others.
This means that every year, Texas companies send some of their best employees to Asia to help develop new facilities and build these famous brands. Many of these employees come from the Dallas-Ft. Worth metropolitan area, one of the largest combined "metroplexes" in the country.
What do these employees do with their personal belongings, during their stint abroad? Dallas storage is a popular option for people planning to spend a few years overseas. Storage.com lists 27 different storage facilities in Dallas, each of them offering desirable amenities such as climate control, 24-hour security, and other features designed to make them attractive to people planning to leave the United States and live in Asia for a short period of time.
Dallas storage, an active rental market, and corporate moving and cultural integration services are all key ways to ensure that Texas staff can make it overseas and begin the work of incorporating their home companies into the Asian market. Whether staff members choose to relocate only themselves or to move the entire family overseas, companies need to prepare everyone involved for the transition and provide as much assistance as possible. Without the right support on the home front, these businesses would be unable to achieve success abroad.
Dallas recently launched a new Fortune 500 company into the Asian market: RadioShack. This retail electronics store experienced a significant drop in sales in the United States, primarily to competing online markets such as Amazon and mega department stores such as Target and Walmart, as well as high-level specialized products like Apple's iPhone. In 2012, RadioShack began plans to open stores in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. To get the job done, RadioShack is working in tandem with Asian companies; the goal is to make RadioShack as popular in Southeast Asia today as it was in the United States a few decades ago.
This means that Southeast Asian countries are likely to see even more American staff members working alongside their Asian counterparts, with the shared goal of making an established brand popular in a new market. This, of course, benefits both Asian and American economies, as it creates jobs for both Asian and American individuals and helps the continued flow of money in both locations. In addition, it provides upward mobility to Asian workers who eventually learn how to manage and run these American-founded stores and business branches.
Texas may be located in the center of the United States, and Dallas-Ft. Worth may be completely landlocked, but that hasn't stopped the state from reaching out to its Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asian neighbors. The state of Texas knows how to do things just a little bigger than America's other states, and it recognizes the Asian market as one of the biggest markets of all. Be prepared to see even more Texas involvement in various Asian economies, as the collaboration between American and Asian businesses continues to grow.
Written by Jane Brown