Uncut Golden Enhydro/Petrolium Quartz Stones (Photo Courtesy of Nugent Jewelry)
When Nugent Jewelry began wholesaling stones and gems about a decade ago, the leadership always had a plan to export jewelry. In 2022 the business, based in Colebrook, began exporting to Canada and Europe.
Although exports are a relatively small part of revenue—less than 10%—that sector of the business facilitates growth and demonstrates strong internal controls that increase the company’s overall value, according to David Hadley, Nugent’s acting head of operations. “Our export program has increased revenue and profitability,” he says.
Nugent Jewelry is one of thousands of NH businesses that are growing by exporting products and services around the world. Until recently, NH enjoyed a surging export market even amid global uncertainties like wars and political changes, increasing 84% between 2016 and 2023, according to the state Department of Business and Economic Affairs (BEA). New Hampshire set export records every year except for 2020, when the pandemic hit, and in 2023, the value of exports from the Granite State hit a record $7.6 billion. However, in 2024 export activity fell 6.5% to $7.1 billion.
In 2024, Germany became NH’s top export market, pushing Canada to second. And while exports to Israel grew 70% between 2023 and 2024, export activity in many of NH’s 10 top markets, including Canada, fell (see chart). “We don’t have specific information why those sales are down in Canada but higher in Germany. There are any number of factors, such as supply chain shifts, but we don’t have specific information regarding that,” says Adam Boltik, international trade resource manager with the NH Office of International Commerce.
Still, export activity is robust in NH. There’s a misconception, even among the business community, “that there isn’t a lot of export activity that goes on, when actually there is,” says Taylor Caswell, BEA commissioner.
While exporting comes with risks and uncertainties given the current geopolitical environment, it also helps businesses increase their resiliency by generating new revenue streams, according to Caswell. “It’s really a risk diversification strategy for businesses,” he says.
How that strategy will be affected by changing leadership in Canada and President Trump’s tariffs for Canada, Mexico, China and other world markets remains unclear but is being closely watched. In early March, the Trump administration announced it was levying a 25% tariff on exports from Mexico and Canada along with an additional 10% tax on exports from China, which is added to the 10% tariff he already charged.
“It’s hard for me to say exactly where we’re going,” in terms of trade with Canada, Caswell says. “It speaks to the need of diversification.”
“There’s a lot of chatter,” Randy Makee, executive director of the NH Aerospace and Defense Export Consortium, agrees. “But at the end of the day we don’t know what’s going to happen until it happens.”
Exports Reduce Risk
In 2023, more than 2,400 NH businesses were exporting, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative. Of those, 86% were small or medium businesses with fewer than 500 employees.
Given that, it’s not surprising that the NH Small Business Development Center has joined a consortium of state and federal agencies, including the Department of Business and Economic Affairs, that support NH exporters.
“Being able to diversify their customer base and the markets that they’re in can be a very worthwhile thing for [a] business,” says Liz Gray, state director of the Small Business Development Center. “Looking at when different markets are doing well or struggling [and] diversifying clients and customers in other parts of the world can balance out the ebbs and flow of revenue.”
Diversification is particularly important for small- and medium-sized manufacturers who provide parts to major international companies, Caswell says. These operations often rely heavily on one major contract to keep their business going. Tapping into foreign markets provides diversity and can makes them more resilient overall, according to Caswell.
“When you’re able to broaden the scope of what are the high risks to your business, having an international presence can help navigate that,” Caswell says.
Keeping Up With Regs and Changes
New Hampshire’s largest export sector is aircraft, spacecraft, and parts related to the production of both. In 2024, more than $1.6 billion in space and flight-related products left the Granite State for global markets according to state data.
“New Hampshire very quietly has a very, very big aerospace economy,” says Makee of the NH Aerospace and Defense Export Consortium, which represents 59 NH exporters. “The space industry in this state is very quiet but very powerful.”
Last year, Germany was the state’s largest export market, fueled by an 18% increase in exports of aircraft parts to that country. At the same time, the export of aircraft parts to Canada decreased by 39% in 2024, resulting in a 20% decrease in overall trade to the northern neighbor, Boltik says. These fluctuations in the global aircraft supply chain made Canada NH’s second-largest export partner, after holding the top spot in 2022 and 2023.
Since space and aircraft components are often used for defense, trade in these sectors is heavily regulated by the U.S. government, NATO treaties, and international governments. Maintaining compliance with various laws is at the forefront for businesses, Makee says, and many companies are quite risk averse.
“In the defense and space sectors you won’t find a lot of risk takers,” he says. “We simply cannot.”
“The smart businesses will hire the experts to help shepherd them through [the export] process,” Makee says. This might include lawyers, bankers, tax professions and export experts with a sharp understanding of various markets.
Exporters also have support from the state and federal government, Makee says. The state’s Office of International Commerce and the federal International Trade Administration, which has a Portsmouth office, keep abreast of global changes that might impact export operations.
“The entire purpose is to ensure that risk is mitigated as much as possible,” Makee says.
Hadley of Nugent Jewelry says that when it comes to identifying new markets for exports, he’s more focused on finding eager customers than examining the intricacies of global politics. “The whole geopolitical thing is kind of above our pay grade,” he says. “What we’re looking for is our ideal customer profile.” Nugent has found those customers in Canada.
The Challenge of a Strong Dollar
Paolo Monaco runs two export companies based in Londonderry. Monaco Company exports cans to Mexico and railroad products to Canada, while BRAUSA Trading provides consulting services to Monaco’s home country of Brazil.
For Monaco, having a strong personal connection to Brazil and fluency in Portuguese is a huge asset. “If you don’t have an understanding of the culture, the language and how the markets operate, it’s just a matter of time until you are excluded from those markets,” Monaco says.
While his understanding of global trade serves him well, Monaco and other exporters face a challenge that’s both a blessing and a curse: the strength of the U.S. dollar. The dollar is about six times more valuable than the Brazilian Real, meaning that any American exports into Brazil are roughly six times more expensive, Monaco says.
Still, through BRAUSA Trading, Monaco works with American companies that export to Brazil. Most often, they’re making a product like a medical device or aerospace part that is only produced in the United States. “Companies in those areas, they have no other choice,” but to buy American exports, Monaco says.
Makee says that the strength of the dollar is a natural headwind that many exporters face. In addition, the cost of doing business in NH is high for many reasons, he notes. The housing crisis in the Granite State drives up housing costs and therefore wages, for example, and puts us at a disadvantage, he says.
To stay competitive, exporters must make their products worth the added expense. “The quality and speed to market have to outweigh [cost],” Makee says.
Accelerator Program
Boltik with the state’s Office of International Commerce wants to see more NH businesses consider exporting. “Most businesses can benefit in some ways from exporting,” Boltik says.
To that end, the office joined with the Small Business Development Center, the U.S. Commercial Services and the Small Business Administration to create the NH Export Accelerator, which launched last year. The accelerator helps demystify the process of exporting, Boltik says, formalizing support that’s been available for years.
This year, the accelerator will welcome companies new to or curious about exporting, while also hosting bootcamps, luncheons and other events to support businesses that have an active export operation.
That includes equipping companies to deal with ever-changing global marketplaces. When Russia invaded Ukraine, Boltik tried to help companies exporting to that region find solutions, he says. “We can bring all these different expertise to the table,” he adds.
That, in turn, can strengthen not only individual companies in NH, but also the state’s export sector as a whole. “One of the best things with us as partners,” Boltik says, “is that as companies diversify their customer base it can help mitigate some of the risks in harder markets and where there’s political change.”
