The Department of Commerce is organizing the Corporate Executive Office (CEO) program at the Paris Air Show ‘99. The Paris Air Show is the world’s largest and most prestigious aerospace show in the world. In 1997, it attracted 1,860 exhibitors from 46 countries, 230 fixed and rotary winged aircraft, and over 122,000 trade visitors from Europe, Asia/Pacific, the Middle East, and North and South America.

The Commerce Department is offering American exporters several opportunities to participate in the Paris Air Show, including the CEO program, a Product Literature Center, and a USA National Pavilion (for more details on these programs and other events, visit the Trade Events Calendar website at http://infoserv2.ita.doc.gov/epc.nsf).

The CEO Program affords lower-cost access to small and medium-sized businesses by allowing them to participate in the world’s largest aerospace exposition without taking on the expense of purchasing and staffing booth space. An innovative alternative to exhibiting, the CEO Program consists of a package of services including:

• scheduling of meetings with potential partners, agents and buyers;
• assignment of a multilingual personal assistant/escort;
• official entry passes;
• one copy of the official Paris Air Show Exhibitor’s Directory;
• invitation to U.S. Ambassador’s Reception;
• pre- and post-show counseling;
• base of operations and access to all amenities in official U.S. Pavilion including shared office suite, equipment, services, and lounge;
• coordination with aerospace industry specialists in European posts as part of Showcase Europe (for more information on the Showcase Europe program, see our website at http://www.sce.doc.gov); and,
• Onsite CEO Program coordination.

The Paris Air Show is the single most important venue for commercial and information exchange for U.S. exporters in the civilian and military aerospace field. It offers not only the unsurpassed forum for access to the French market but also a truly international exhibition. It is an excellent means to explore virtually all European markets, as well as other foreign markets.

Because the Paris Air Show attracts buyers and experts in the field from all ends of the globe, it serves as a barometer of trends, an indispensable source of market information, and the most efficient available tool for establishing contacts and selling or preparing for sales to all world markets.

The goal of the CEO Program at the Paris Air Show is to facilitate a productive presence for small and medium-sized enterprises without incurring the major expenses associated with purchasing and staffing exhibition space for eight days. The CEO Program enables U.S. aerospace companies to familiarize themselves with this important trade fair, to conduct market research, and to explore export opportunities through pre-screened meetings with potential partners. Importantly, the CEO Program allows U.S. companies to have a presence at the show, providing them with an enhanced image and level of engagement, an office infrastructure environment, and the support of knowledgeable CS staff and personal assistants focused on furthering company-specific objectives. Access to French, European, and other international markets and business partners is made possible through the CEO Program in a manner which cannot be matched by simply attending the show as a visitor.

Participants in the Paris Air Show CEO Program will be recruited and counseled by Export Assistance Center trade specialists, particularly members of the CS Aerospace & Defense Technology Team. Company information and literature will be forwarded by the companies to CS Paris and distributed for familiarization to assigned assistants in advance. The CS Aerospace & Defense Team member assigned to the CEO Program is to arrive in Paris in mid-May, whereupon he/she will begin the partner search, management and logistical coordination of the program. Participants will arrive in Paris on their own schedule but report to the CEO office at the Paris Air Show on Sunday, June 13^th. At this time, they will be briefed by CS staff on program features and personally introduced to assigned assistants. Company literature and promotional material will either be shipped to CS Paris or brought by participants, however participants will not have access to a Catalog Display, unless they choose to take part in the Department of Commerce’s official catalog show and pay an additional participation fee (see Trade Events Calendar website). No exhibition or larger demonstration items are permitted or appropriate. CS staff will be available for information and assistance throughout the duration of the Paris Air Show; the CS Aerospace & Defense Technology Team member assigned to the CEO Program will be on-site during the course of the Air Show. Buyer groups for CEO Program participants organized by third-country CS posts will be received and desired meetings held. CS information booths in the USA Pavilions will promote and refer interested parties to CEO Program participants. CEO Program participants will all receive invitations to the Ambassador’s Reception. Prior to the participants’ departure, CS staff will advise and counsel participants on appropriate follow-up actions to be taken.

Participants arrive according to their own schedules, but all assemble at the CEO Program headquarters in the official U.S. Pavilion on Sunday, June 13, 1999. According to the plan selected, participation will end at 5 p.m. on June 16, 1999.

Paris Air Show CEO Program participation promotion will be conducted by CS Paris and by CS Aerospace & Defense Technology Team members in Export Assistance Centers and will include, but not be limited to, publication in local French, as well as domestic trade publications and associations newsletters, mailings from internal mailing lists, Federal Register Notice, and through posting on ITA’s home page. Recruitment will close April 15, 1999.

• Submission of the $1,975 participation fee ($700 for each additional participant), the participation agreement, and certifications.

• Timely and adequate provision of company and product/service information and literature, in order to be able to enable communication of company’s objectives and scheduling of appointments.

• Certification that the company meets Departmental guidelines for participation.

• Certification that the company's products and/or services are manufactured or produced in the United States or if manufactured/produced outside of the United States, the product/service must be marketed under the name of a U.S. firm and have U.S. content representing at least 51% of the value of the finished good or service.

• Any partisan political activities of an applicant, including political contributions, will be entirely irrelevant to the selection process.