Just 10 Days Left Until the 10th Annual Global Small Business Forum, 10/24/25!

Tickets are moving fast – grab yours when you can.  Learn more here. There's a phenomenal lineup of speakers and this marks the 10th consecutive year of hosting the Global Small Business Forum!

FINAL CALL: 9th Annual Global Small Business Forum 10/18/24 in Chicago!

©2024 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Ready.  Set.  Let's go global!  There is still time to sign up for the biggest and best 9th Annual Global Small Business Forum, "Global Success Within Reach – The Bigger Picture," held in Chicago on Friday, October 18th from 8:00-11:30 AM CT.  Hear from a cast of experienced speakers who know the ins and outs to global expansion.

Our cast of speakers – like an Academy Award lineup but for experts and business owners who drive results through global expansion – is as follows:

• Angie Kappel, VP Foreign Exchange, Capital Markets, Associated Bank
• Tami Lange, Founder and President, Save the Girls
• Ellen Wheeler, Partner and Litigation Attorney, Foley & Lardner LLP
• Marc Schulman, President, The Eli's Cheesecake Company
• Amy Mills, Owner and President, 17th Street Barbecue
• Donald J. Lloyd, Senior VP, Manager:  Capital Markets – Foreign Exchange, Rate Swaps and Commodity Derivatives, Associated Bank (Moderator)
• Kirk Samson, Global Business Leader, Co-Founder, Samson Worldwide LLC and Global Business Consultant
• Richard Paullin, Executive Director, International Trade Association of Greater Chicago
• Yvette Laugier, Chairman Emeritus, Housewares Association Board of Directors
• Diamond Young, AVP Foreign Exchange | Capital Markets, Associated Bank
• Rajiv Khatau, Managing Director, LODAAT Pharma
• Valarie King-Bailey, CEO, OnShore Technology Group, Inc. 

Forum is sponsored by Associated Bank and hosted by Foley & Lardner.  

To learn more and to register, visit: https://globalsmallbusinessforum.com/.  I [Laurel Delaney] hope to see you there!

#successwithinreach

Grab Your Place at the 9th Annual Global Small Business Forum Held in Chicago 10/18/24

©2024 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Get ready for the biggest and best 9th Annual Global Small Business Forum, "Global Success Within Reach – The Bigger Picture," held in Chicago on Friday, October 18th from 8:00-11:30 AM CT.  Hear from a cast of experienced speakers who know the ins and outs to global expansion.

Forum is sponsored by Associated Bank and hosted by Foley & Lardner.  

To learn more and to register, visit:  https://globalsmallbusinessforum.com/.  I [Laurel Delaney] hope to see you there!

Only 3 Days Left to Register for the 6th Annual Global Small Business Forum (Virtual)

©2021 GSBB Media LLC.  All rights reserved.

Only 3 days away from our 6th Annual Global Small Business Forum. Have you registered? The event takes place on Friday, October 15, 2021 from 8:00AM-11:30AM CT. 

Our theme this year is Reimagine Global Business: Organizing for the Next Normal.

With a virtual program anyone can participate from anywhere in the world provided they have an Internet connection. That said, we will have representation from all over the world:  New Zealand, Germany, Nigeria, France, Argentina, Uruguay – to name just a few of the countries where people have already registered from.

You will hear from:

1. Lori Novak, VP, Foreign Exchange, Associated Bank
2. Laurel Delaney, President, GlobeTrade.com and Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®
3. Marc Schulman, President, Eli's Cheesecake
4. Angie Kappel, VP, Foreign Exchange, Associated Bank
5. Richard Paullin, Executive Director, International Trade Association of Greater Chicago
6. Donald Lloyd, Senior VP, Foreign Exchange, Associated Bank
7. Alexander Lans, Founder and CEO, FOAL LLC
8. Karen Tinsley-Sroka, Founder and Creative Executive, My Scratch Offs
9. Ellington Ellis, Co-founder, Global Battery Solutions
10. Michelle Forrester, President, Beehive Botanicals
11. Flemming Poulsen, International Sales Manager, Bisco
12. Marshall Girtman, Domestic and International Sales Specialist, Special Mine Services

Speakers will share their experience reimagining global business and how they are preparing for the next normal. Discussions will cover dealing with cultural, regulatory and legal issues; sharing best practices; uncovering challenges and how they are resolved; wrestling with global supply chain issues; entering new overseas markets, finding new sources of supply, revealing lessons learned from the pandemic and more.

The program is brought to you by lead sponsor, Associated Bank, with assistance by supporting sponsor Foley & Lardner LLP.  Without their support, this program would not be possible.

You won't want to miss this – considered the Oscars for international trade.

Looking forward to your participation! To learn more and to register, visit: https://globalsmallbusinessforum.com

Note:  We have some fantastic raffle prizes that we save for the end of the program (fun)! Must be present to win.

 

5th Annual Global Small Business Forum Hosted Virtually on 10/16/20

@2020 Global TradeSource, Ltd.  All rights reserved.

Please join us for the world's biggest Global Small Business Forum – #BeAGlobalUnicorn – hosted virtually on Friday, October 16th from 7:30AM – 11:30AM Central Time.  Hear from 4 CEOs (refer to graphic above and link below) on how they are successfully navigating their global businesses through the global pandemic, trade wars, trade tariffs and just about every other imaginable challenge in 2020. They will prove to you that if they can steer their businesses effectively during turbulent times, you can too! 

You will also hear from special guests Marc Schulman, President, Eli's Cheesecake and Richard Paullin, Executive Director, ITAGC. 

To learn more and to register, please visit:  http://globalsmallbusinessforum.com.  

Associated Bank (lead Gold sponsor), Multilingual Connections (Bronze sponsor) and Foley & Lardner (Host sponsor) are the proud sponsors of this event.

Today in Global Small Business: How Leaders Can Chart a Course For Their Organizations and Guide Their Teams Through Tumultuous Times

©iStock/Revolu7lon93

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Microsoft launches initiative to help 25 million people worldwide acquire the digital skills needed in a COVID-19 economy.
• The coronavirus first hit large, globally connected cities, but is now spreading rapidly throughout the South and in smaller places.
• Quote of the week:  "I do not think that there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance.  It overcomes almost everything, even nature." – John D. Rockefeller
• The pandemic has dramatically changed the world we know. Here’s how leaders can chart a course for their organizations and guide their teams through tumultuous times.
• Mark your calendar now for next Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global® #wegginar 8/12 at 11AM CT.
• Everyone worldwide can now sign up for our 5th Annual Global Small Business Forum held VIRTUALLY on October 16, 2020 (morning program).  Whether you are based in South Africa, Ireland or the United States, you may join us!  Hooray!  To learn more and to register, visit, http://globalsmallbusinessforum.com.  

Registration is OPEN: 5th Annual Global Small Business Forum 4/17/20 held in Chicago

©2020 Global TradeSource, Ltd.  All rights reserved.

Registration is open for our 5th Annual Global Small Business Forum to be held in Chicago Friday, April 17th from 7:30-11:30 AM CT.  The theme this year is “Be a Global Unicorn.”  Hear from 4 CEOs who will share their experience on global business growth, success stories, challenges and lessons learned.  They will also address how impossible expectations and ambitions are driving them to become global unicorns.  To learn more and to register, visit: http://globalsmallbusinessforum.com. Please Like our Facebook Page:  https://www.facebook.com/globalsmallbusinessforum/.  We look forward to your participation!

More information

Sponsors

Gold:  Associated Bank
Bronze:  Multilingual Connections
Host:  Foley & Lardner LLP
Support:  From the International Trade Association of Greater Chicago and others.

Panelists: Lori Novak (moderator), VP Foreign Exchange | Capital Markets, Associated Bank; Danny Park, CEO and Co-founder, RoboTHINK LLC; Aisha Ceballos-Crump, CEO and Founder, Honey Baby Naturals; Heather Acerra, co-founder, LUX Blox; and, Rajiv Khatau, Managing Director, LODAAT Pharma.

Other speakers:  Marc Schulman, President, Eli’s Cheesecake, Richard Paullin, Executive Director, International Association of Greater Chicago, and Laurel Delaney, President, Globetrade.com and Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®.

Time and location:  8:00 – 11:30 a.m., Foley & Lardner LLP, 321 North Clark Street, Suite 3000, Chicago.

Admission:  $20 (students); $40 (general); Admission + Vendor Table - $400. For more information and to register, please see:  http://globalsmallbusinessforum.com/.

Questions?  Contact Laurel Delaney.

Positioning For Global Success 10/19/18 (Chicago)

©2018 GSBB Media LLC.  All rights reserved.

Join us for the 4th Annual Global Small Business Forum held in Chicago on Friday, October 19th from 8:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. at the Gleacher Center.

Companies of every size, in every industry and in every country who desire to grow face the prospect of expanding internationally. From finding customers, to making, sourcing and marketing products and services worldwide, to recruiting and retaining global talent with different backgrounds and capabilities, going global is no longer the exception but the rule. The big question is:  How do we do it?

Learn and hear from four (4) successful business owners, who are taking the world by storm as they talk about what it takes to go global, and how companies today can achieve the radical transformation they need if they are to continue to flourish worldwide.

Ten (10) great speakers are lined up:

1. Sonat Birnecker Hart, President, KOVAL Distillery (panelist)
2. Allison Larson, CEO, World Blazer LLC (panelist)
3. Christophe Ridet, co-founder and CEO, Wear Moi (panelist)
4. John Walton, Founder and Managing Director, Jackpoint Jackstand (panelist)
5. Chantal Wittman Meier, Vice President, International Trade Banking MB Financial Bank 
6. Deanna Kunze, Associate, Nixon Peabody 
7. Laurel Delaney, President, GlobeTrade.com and President, wegg® 
8. Ellen Rudnick, previously serving as executive director of the Polsky Center and clinical professor of entrepreneurship at Chicago Booth
9. Marc Schulman, President, Eli's Cheesecake
10. Richard Paullin, Executive Director, ITAGC

Special thanks to the forum sponsors:  MB Financial, Nixon Peabody and the University of Chicago Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

To learn more and to register, visit:  http://www.globalsmallbusinessforum.com

Last Chance: Register for the 3rd Annual Global Small Business Forum Held in Chicago 10/20

©2017 GSBB Media LLC.  All rights reserved.

The best forum on the planet.  To learn more and to register, visit: http://www.globalsmallbusinessforum.com.  See you there!

Global E-Commerce Explosion Takes Place in Chicago 10/20/17

©2017 GSBB Media, LLC.  All rights reserved.

We are starting to ramp up on our marketing and social media efforts on our forum.  After all, a party, or in this case, our 3rd Annual Global Small Business Forum, is absolutely not as impactful unless key people like you — business owners and entrepreneurs — attend.

Here's what is in store for our program and why you should attend.

GLOBAL E-COMMERCE EXPLOSION (#GEE)!  Third Annual Global Small Business Forum sponsored by: Global Trade Source Ltd.; MB Financial Bank; Center for International Business, Loyola University Chicago, Quinlan School of Business; and supported by the International Trade Association of Greater Chicago and others.

Speakers include: Jennifer Bayon, Vice President of International Sales, Paris Presents; Laurel Delaney, President, GlobeTrade; Logan Hanes, International Account Executive, UPS; James Kornacki, Chief Wine Revolutionary, Ullo LLC; Alexander Lans, Founder and CEO, FOAL LLC; Chantal Wittman Meier, Vice President, International Trade Banking, MB Financial Bank; Lil Mohan, Entrepreneur and Academician; Richard Paullin, Executive Director, International Trade Association of Greater Chicago and Chairman, Illinois District Export Council; Marc S. Schulman, President, Eli’s Cheesecake Company; Andrea Sreshta, Co-founder, LuminAID; Robert S. Steiner, District Director, U.S. Small Business Administration, and Ernie Watts, Executive Director, Global Chamber Chicago.

Why you should attend:

1. Network with entrepreneurs, business leaders, business owners, top executives, young professionals and students.
2. Enjoy and learn from experienced business owners who run multimillion dollar e-commerce companies as they share their perspectives and stories on expanding their businesses internationally.
3. Connect with seasoned international trade experts who can help you grow your business globally.
4. Be eligible to enter an exciting raffle for a chance to win special prizes donated by the speakers' companies.

Time:  7:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Location:  The John and Kathy Schreiber Center, Loyola University Chicago, 16 East Pearson Street, 9th floor, Chicago.

Fee:  $125 (Students - $75; Vendor Table - $500). For information and to register, please visit: http://globalsmallbusinessforum.com/.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Today in Global Small Business: How a Startup Secured a Big Global Contract with Microsoft

©iStock/Rawpixel Ltd

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• OPEN for REGISTRATIONS:  The 3rd Annual Global Small Business Forum held in Chicago on Friday, October 20. Check out the amazing speaker lineup!  I'll (Laurel Delaney) will be there. Will you?  Theme is on e-commerce: Global E-Commerce Explosion! (#GEE).
• How a small startup secured a big global contract with Microsoft. 
• Making a company environmentally friendly and global.
• Learn to navigate global business travel in 2017 (WEGGinar™ on 10/11 is free of charge but you must register to attend: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/6874264726093775875.
• How a nonprofit is making a global impact.
• Based in Chicago?  Like learning about exporting and sampling a good whiskey? Join us tomorrow, 9/19, in person at Chicago-based KOVAL Distillery!

Only 3 Days Left to Register for the 2nd Annual Global Small Business Forum in Chicago

Discover how you can make the world your business at the 2nd Annual Global Small Business Forum held in downtown Chicago on Friday, October 21st from 7:30 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. Central time. Here's what you will get out of the program:

• Listen to more than a dozen experts and business owners talk about what they have done to expand their business internationally.
• Network, learn and have fun with more than 75 entrepreneurs, small business owners and service providers on what strategies and methods you need to put into place to be successful in the global marketplace.
• Receive a copy of the 2nd edition of my Exporting book endorsed by best-selling Good to Great author Jim Collins.
• Enjoy a continental breakfast and box lunch.
• Win an iPad Mini or a MIO Global health watch. 

Can't wait to see you there! 

To learn more and to register, visit:  http://www.globalsmallbusinessforum.com

Illustration credit:  ©2015 GSBB Media LLC.  All rights reserved.

Today in Global Small Business: Americans Celebrate Labor Day

©iStock/Kras1

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How to take a crash course in global business.
• World's best Global Small Business Forum held in Chicago 10/21 is OPEN for registrations.
• In case you forgot, reasons to go global.
• American celebrate Labor Day all weekend long (have a Happy and productive one).
• Trade tensions overshadow the Global Economic Summit.
• The world's most livable city for the sixth year in a row.

Today in Global Small Business: U.S. Export-Import Bank Will be Reauthorized (Prediction)

©iStock/Joebelanger

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• Seats are going fast for the Global Small Business Forum held in Chicago on 10/23.
• Is cross-border e-commerce underdeveloped in Europe?
• Are you a rare female (entrepreneurial) bird?
• How the next generation can capitalize on an international MBA.
• How on October 26, 2015 we will know where Exim stands on reauthorization.
• Why it's important to keep an open mind on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

Today in Global Small Business: How to Take Advantage of Significant Duty Savings On Imports

©iStock/Emarto

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How do you predict the future?  These 8 tips might help.
• The Global Small Business Forum held in Chicago on 10/23/15.  Have you registered?
• Would you recognize DHL Global Forwarding as a top employer?
• How U.S. importers can take advantage of significant duty savings.
• Trend for female entrepreneurship is significantly up globally.
• The best supply chain and logistics blogs on the web (according to Freightos).

Happy Labor Day to all Americans who have contributed to the strength of our economy.

Today in Global Small Business: The $400 Billion Cybercrime Problem

©iStock/Crstrbrt

What's affecting me, my clients, my colleagues and other global small business owners:

• How to avoid mishaps when shipping internationally.
• Why the rise of the modern, independent Asian woman.
• The advantages of direct exporting.
• Have you saved the date (10/23) to attend the world's best Global Small Business Forum?
• What does it mean if the Chinese middle class expects to reach one billion by 2030?
• What's the $400 billion threat to global business?