Dawn Wivell has made a career of helping NH companies succeed in the global marketplace. Now she is using that expertise to help companies-nationally and globally-connect with one another. Wivell launched Firebrand International in Portsmouth in August with her son Dustin after leading the NH International Trade Resource Center in Concord for more than two decades.
Using her experience from coordinating international trade missions, Wivell plans to work with governments and businesses to develop foreign markets, expand exporting, and build international networks. And she says the timing is perfect as a soft economy has many businesses looking for new markets. As evidence of that, she says exports from NH reached an all-time high of $4.4 billion in 2010.
Helping companies succeed globally has everything to do with managing relationships-Wivell's favorite part of the job. Her arsenal includes a fluency in Italian, decent Spanish, and the abilities to read French and introduce herself in dozens of languages. It's exciting to move into new frontiers, she says. I'm being asked to manage relationships between businesses. There are a lot of cross-cultural issues. The cool thing is, in my career with the state, I've had to deal with every situation, culture, product and market. From huge companies to one-person shops, I've worked with them.
The company will initially focus on Indonesia, Brazil and Ireland-places where the Wivells have many contacts and which, in the case of the first two, are emerging markets. She will also focus on businesses with fewer than 500 employees. These are fast growth markets and they are difficult markets, Wivell says of her target countries. They hold a lot of challenges and opportunities.
Her phone is already ringing with more requests from companies than she and her son can handle, leading Wivell to consider hiring additional staff. And while her business will take her around the world, she plans to remain involved in NH. She sits on the International Trade Association Board, the board of the District Export Council, which is affiliated with the U.S. Department of Commerce, and on the advisory council for the NH International Trade Resource Center.
For more information, visit www.firebrandinternational.com.