World Trade Center Arkansas Growing State's Trade and Advancing U of A's Land Grant Mission

The World Trade Center Arkansas is a little-known U of A-affiliated entity with a big job. Its mandate is to grow trade for the state of Arkansas.

Conceived in 2007 by Sen. John Boozman, a U.S. representative at the time, and then-U of A Chancellor John White, the trade center is a licensed member of a global association comprising members in 90 countries, including members in the United States. The U of A holds this license, and the U of A, the state of Arkansas and the World Trade Center Arkansas benefit from this unique collaboration focused on advancing the state of Arkansas and our Arkansas businesses through international trade. Elevating our state through education, research and service to communities is the purpose of a land grant institution.

How does this collaboration work, and how does the World Trade Center Arkansas grow trade for the state? One of the center's most effective tools is a grant through the U.S.  Small Business Administration's State Trade Expansion Program, also known as the STEP grant program.

Through the STEP, the Small Business Administration awards one applicant per state funds to help their state's eligible small businesses pursue international trade. The program allows the distribution of funds for activities aimed at increasing international trade, including, but not limited to, trade shows, trade missions, translation services and international marketing.

The STEP files annual reports with Congress to keep them apprised of the effectiveness of the program. Congress considers one of the key indicators of the program's success to be the dollar amount of sales made for every dollar of grant funds expended. To compile these numbers, the STEP requires businesses that receive these funds to report sales numbers to the grantee who distributes the funds. For Arkansas, that grantee is the World Trade Center Arkansas. The grantee reports this information to the Small Business Administration.

Eligible Arkansas businesses receiving STEP grant funds must, therefore, report to the World Trade Center Arkansas the sales they make that are attributable to the funding received. The trade center reports to the SBA the anonymized sum of the funds distributed and the dollar amount of sales. Those numbers and other data, state comparisons and company highlights are compiled by the SBA and sent to Congress in an annual report.

Notably, in the SBA's most recent report to Congress — dated July 2022 and reporting on the fiscal year 2021 — the World Trade Center Arkansas ranked sixth nationally in the return on investment achieved for every dollar it distributed to Arkansas businesses. Specifically, for every dollar the trade center distributed to an Arkansas business, on average, businesses achieved sales of $98.39. This is a win-win. This is great for Arkansas, Arkansas businesses and the STEP program.

With this solid ROI, the SBA awarded the World Trade Center Arkansas a 33% larger grant for fiscal year 2022. With more funds, the trade center will be able to help more eligible Arkansas companies that export increase their international export markets.

As of the writing of this, for every $1 the trade center has distributed, Arkansas businesses have achieved sales of $128. Now that is a good ROI. That is good business. And that is how you grow trade.