BRUSSELS: Flanders Investment and Trade, an economic development office that represents the northern region of Belgium, has opened a Houston location to solidify a top trade partnership between Texas and Belgium.
Belgium was Houston’s 12th-largest trading partner in 2015, according to data from the Greater Houston Partnership. Total trade value between the two regions — largely composed of exports coming out of Houston — has hovered around $5 billion the past three years, with more than 64 percent of the export trade composed of organic chemicals and plastics. Other trade products include of the trade happening in minerals, consumer goods machinery and other manufactured goods, according to the GHP.
Flanders Investment and Trade, a public agency promoting trade for the northern Belgium region, has opened an office in Houston. The office is its first in the state of Texas.
But beyond the established trade relationships, Heidi Hoover, head of the FIT Houston office, sees room for growth in Houston’s health care sector. “There are a lot of synergies when you look at the biotech industry in Belgium and what’s happening in Houston,” Hoover said. “That’s one of the main things we hope to expose to our companies on this mission. Texas isn’t a one-trick pony; it’s very diversified.”
The office officially has been open since August, but a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony with several members of the Belgian government is planned for Dec. 8. Since the soft opening, four Flemish companies have already approached the office interested in doing business in Houston, Hoover said.
The FIT office is small for now but could grow as needed in the future. Additionally, it joins two other Belgian regional offices in Houston hoping to foster trade. It is the first FIT office in Texas, Hoover added.
