Liverpool’s vision of America

Date: 29 September 2011

Liverpool Vision has appointed two American-based consultants to source inward investment and trade opportunities for the city.

Kristen Hirst will cover the east coast and the key areas of New York, Georgia, Austin, Boston and Memphis, while Gareth Lewis will look after the west coast, particularly California, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Kristen is an international investment and marketing specialist with 17 years of experience in working to foster trans-Atlantic business opportunities, having been based both in the US and UK.

She most recently served as Senior Vice President for The North of England Inward Investment Agency, developing strategy and overseeing offices in Atlanta, Boston, Toronto, Chicago and Los Angeles.

She has 12 years of project management experience working with both Fortune 500 and smaller companies seeking to establish themselves in the UK.

Previously Kristen spent five years in Leeds developing a trans-Atlantic marketing programme and overseeing Foreign Direct Investment project teams in Yorkshire.

Gareth Lewis is an experienced executive with an outstanding track record of growing businesses globally and developing high performance teams. He has spent the last seven years with the North of England Inward Investment Agency, where he served as Vice President of Business Development in the North American market.

He has a breadth of experience working at senior level negotiations with executives in fast growth companies and Fortune 500 companies.

Gareth also mentors numerous early stage businesses and established the Young Entrepreneurs Programme in Los Angeles and Silicon Valley.

In recent months, Liverpool has welcomed delegations from Boston and Georgia and the city has now successfully established the Rock n Soul Mates cultural twinning with Memphis, with the new Elvis and Us exhibition opening at The Beatles Story in October.

Further, in March 2012, Liverpool will become the first European city to host the Global Entrepreneurship Congress established by the US-based Kauffman Foundation.

Ailsa Horne, Head of International Investment at Liverpool Vision, said: “The States is becoming a key part of our developing international strategy and improving links there is one of our main priorities.

“Kristen and Gareth bring a broad network of contacts and a wealth of experience of the markets we are trying to break into and will be vital if we can turn recent US interest into gains for Liverpool.

“Their roles include a broad remit to promote the interests of the City of Liverpool, building strong contact networks of businesses, investors and influencers.

“They will focus particularly on trade and investment, articulating the business opportunities that Liverpool has to offer and promoting the Liverpool brand.

“They will also be assisting in facilitating opportunities for Liverpool companies to develop trading connections in their markets.”

For further information, biographies and pictures please contact Jonathan Caswell at Liverpool Vision on 0151 600 2946 / jcaswell@liverpoolvision.co.uk

Notes to editors:

• Liverpool Vision is the city’s economic development company which integrates economic and physical development and business and enterprise support designed to accelerate the city’s growth and build a sustainable economy.

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