Loudoun County Goes European
« If you use a credit card, or a smart phone, chances are that you’ve come through Loudoun county “, says Scott K. York, “as 50 percent of all internet traffic in the world goes through Loudoun.” So does a good part of air traffic, as the county is home to Dulles International Airport, 35 kilometers from Washington DC.
It seems quite natural that this particular spot in the United States should have international ambitions. “In fact, this is pretty much a one-man-show”, says Chairman York who heads the board of supervisors of the local government. “But the world is a small place, we need to open up.” He picked up the challenge some six years ago, when he had the opportunity to visit Germany .
On his first trip to Europe, Chairman York met up with German companies that had chosen Loudoun for their North American headquarters. The second time around, he went to Finland, home to a strong IT industry, just like Loudoun. The present trip has taken him to Frankfurt and Paris, preparing for business meetings together with IBT Partners: proud to be Loudoun county’s representative for international business and trade development in Europe since 2009.
“This trip is part of a long-term effort”, says Chairman York, “international affairs take several years to build up. But we do expect some solid fruit next year.” For the time being, his focus is on the IT and aerospace industries. Loudoun county has some good reasons to believe in this new strategy’s success. The county is close to one of the major airports on the East Coast of the US, office hours overlap with Europe, and expatriate staff will be happy to discover good infrastructure and high-quality schools. After work, Loudoun's established wine trails provide direct tasting experiences along with scenic mountain views and relaxing drives through the rolling hills of Virginia.
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