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Kurtis Walter was introduced to ITC by a coworker when he asked Kurtis to participate as one of the featured speakers for the virtual training session on export documentation.  Meeting some of the members and learning more about the council, he realized this would be a good opportunity to meet and connect with other international trade professionals in the Kansas City area. 

Prior to his career in international trade, he used to work in the footwear industry, which took him to some cities in Mexico and Canada, but his primary travels were to China and Taiwan.  Kurtis has visited several major cities in China like Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Chongqing. But if he were to pick a favorite city in China, it would be Xiamen.  It is a smaller coastal city across from Taiwan with much less people, less metropolitan, and more natural beauty.  What he likes about international travel is the opportunity to experience and better understand other cultures.

Kurtis is currently the Director, International Trade Compliance at Dairy Farmers of America where he has served for three  years. He graduated from Kansas State University with an Industrial Engineering degree.  A large footwear company headquartered in Topeka, KS was hiring young Industrial Engineers to work in their distribution center to improve processes and efficiencies.  That led him to a packaging engineer position within the sourcing department at the corporate office.  Later he was given opportunities managing different areas in logistics and international transportation.  Then a customs compliance manager position opened, and they asked if he would be interested.  One of the requirements was to take the US customs broker exam which he knew of the difficulty and challenge of passing this exam.  Fortunately, he was disciplined enough to plan his study time and stick to it.  Kurtis passed and earned his US Customs Broker License.  He served as the Global Customs Compliance Manager for approximately 6 years.  During that time, the footwear company was facing some business challenges.  There was new ownership, leadership, and a lot of restructuring going on.  That’s when he applied for an open position as Manager, International Trade Compliance at Dairy Farmers of America.  "I am thankful they hired me, then promoted me, and so here I am."    

One of the goals he is currently working on is to develop a top tier trade compliance program here at Dairy Farmers of America.  DFA is in good shape, but Kurtis still has some work to do to raise the bar.  After that, Kurtis is open to any opportunities within his company to fill a need. "Since the pandemic, I would like to start getting out more. There are a lot of places I haven’t visited and a lot of people I haven’t met yet. I would like to start developing new relationships in person again."  

Fun Facts & Advice 
Name three people (dead or alive) that you would invite to dinner: 

What was the last book that you read? 

It seems to have been a while since I have read a book so I am not exactly sure which one was the last, but it may have been one written by Mark Levin.

Who inspires you? 

Several people have inspired me over the years like parents, grandparents, good teachers, good bosses and leaders at work and some religious leaders. I probably can’t name just one.

What advice would you give someone who wants to get into International Business/International Trade? 

There are a lot of countries with a lot of different regulations, and they seem to change often.  There is no end to learning if you are willing.  There is too much information for one person to know everything.  Develop key relationships with experienced people in the areas that you are interested.  Build your list of reliable resources.  Members of this International Trade Council are great resources.  People who work at customs brokerage and freight forwarding companies are good resources as well.

What else do you want to tell us about yourself/what is something unique about you that is generally not known?

I sing tenor in my church choir.

On February 25^th, Kristi Gribble presented the Hallmark Cards experience with the recent international shipping crisis. Kristi Gribble is the Global Supply Chain Operations Director at Hallmark Cards where she has worked for the past 28 years.

“The last two years feels like twenty years!”

Ms. Gribble was dealing with tariffs in 2019 and cheering on the Chiefs at the Super Bowl in Miami in February of 2020. Upon returning from the crowded stadium, she read the headline in the Wall Street Journal “Super Bowl Chiefs Make It Worth the Wait”. The article below the fold reported that China had shut down their country due to the Coronavirus outbreak. After Chinese New Year, many suppliers did not re-open. Hallmark Distribution Centers shut down for about 4 weeks, but were back up and running by May 2020. Sales were still strong because people were sending cards to their loved ones whom they couldn’t see in person.

By the Fall of 2020, transit times had hit 50 days which had previously been 35 days. In May of 2021, COVID cases shut down the port of Shenzhen. Christmas products were not going to arrive to retailers by early fall when retailers start holiday decorating. Hallmark began cross-department planning meetings and dubbed the operation “Saving Christmas”.  Container availability was significantly reduced through the port.  The Saving Christmas SWAT team met daily to prioritize products and containers. Through all their hard work, 98% of product arrived in the DC distribution warehouse in time for Christmas.

Key Takeaways:

1. 2022 standard container rates are doubling and tripling. Hallmark is trying to lock in current rates now before inflationary rates hit again.
2. Currently looking at options in Mexico for the long-term and automation options for hand-intensive work as a mid-term strategy.
3. Work on building “Agility Muscles” to improve flexibility in approaching supply chain issues.
4. Protect your company from cyber-attacks. One of Hallmark’s expediters was hit with a cyberattack last Sunday, and is now using manual processes until their systems are back up which could be weeks.
5. Accept that your supply chain team will no longer be the hero of the company. The new normal means that your team is no longer able to save the day by themselves. Create cross-departmental communication patterns that seeks input from all stakeholders.

Finally, Ms. Gribble ended her presentation with some advice for dealing with the mental strain of the pandemic. Stop saying “It can’t get any worse.” We have learned that it can get worse.

Thanks to Beau Jackson of Husch Blackwell Law Firm for arranging the Milburn Country Club for our event!

MEDIA RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 1, 2022
For more information:
Mary Odom, Executive Director
office@itcgkc.org

Fang Shen Selected for the ITCGKC Women in International Business Award

(Kansas City, MO) – The International Trade Council of Greater Kansas City is pleased to announce that Fang Shen, Partner at Husch Blackwell Law Firm has been selected as the 2022 recipient of the Women in International Business Award.  Ms. Shen leads the Asia Client Services team and concentrates on domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, loans and financing transactions, corporate law matters, and global manufacturing and distribution. She is fluent in Chinese and English and received her legal education in the United States and China which enables her to counsel U.S. businesses expanding to China and Chinese companies for their legal needs in the United States. Ms. Shen currently serves on the Asian American Chamber of Commerce of KC Board of Directors and the Edgar Snow Memorial Foundation Board of Directors .

The ITC honors a distinguished woman in the Kansas City international business community each year. Criteria for award recipient include: 

• Professional achievement (in international trade/development), and has a long-standing career in international trade.
• Is involved with other organizations in business and the community, and shares their expertise
• Proudly represents KC nationally and internationally
• Is a member of or supports the ITCGKC and its mission
• Has promoted the Kansas City metro as a center for international trade
• Has often held leadership roles to mentor or advise future IB professionals
• Has demonstrated a drive to educate and develop others in international trade
• Has an inspirational story of her own path

About the International Trade Council of Greater Kansas City (ITCGKC)

The International Trade Council of Greater Kansas City was founded during World War II by a group of area business leaders with the purpose of promoting Kansas City’s regional products and trade prospects. Since our founding in 1944 our mission has changed slightly to reflect the times but has retained our core values – to foster development, expansion and education of international trade. ITCGKC is found online at http://itcgkc.org, and can be followed on Twitter at @ITCKC. 

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Download the full press release PDF here.

Anna Grossman became a member of ITC when she joined Bestway International almost 5 years ago. She started attending events almost immediately to meet people and learn more about international trade. In 2021, Ms. Grossman was elected as the new Board Secretary.

Ms. Grossman wanted to join ITC out of curiosity as to the different types of professional fields that supported the international trade market in Kansas City. She was hoping to network with folks who would need freight forwarding services or consultation on international trade processes and therefore would be a great fit professionally.

Ms. Grossman loves traveling internationally. It’s always an adventure, and you never quite know what to expect. She has been to Canada, London, China, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Mexico. Her absolute favorite place by far was Vietnam, in Da Nang, which is a centralized city within the country. The people there were so kind and helpful and the food was amazing.

Currently, Ms. Grossman works at Bestway International, a local freight forwarder that specializes in international trade within the Kansas City market where she is an account manager. Her journey to Bestway began while she was attending the University of Missouri Kansas City when she needed a flexible job to work around her school commitment. She took a job at a call center and learned how to do phone sales. She spent three years learning inside sales before joining the team at Bestway International, where Jay Devers actually mentored me one-on-one for business-to-business sales. She continues to look for ways to be of service to the community and to grow professionally and personally.

Fun Facts & Advice

Name one person (dead or alive) that you would invite to dinner:

I would invite my grandpa who died when I was 18. I would love for him to meet my son, Adam and just sit with him again.

Who inspires you?

Laura Trimble is a very close friend of mine, who inspires me. She was also a single mom for quite some time and has helped me navigate many areas of my life both personally and professionally. Without her mentorship and direction, I would not be where I am at today.

What are your career goals?

I am currently working on finishing my MBA at the University of Missouri Kansas City. Although an MBA was in no way required for this position, I believe it’s very important to continue challenging myself, to learn new things and help others succeed. I hope to broaden my travel, to learn first hand more about international trade, by participating in the supply chain process overseas.

What advice would you give someone who wants to get into International Business/International Trade?

I would suggest that they ask a lot of questions! This industry has so many moving parts and is constantly changing. I learn things everyday from the operations team at Bestway International, clients that we work with, and people in my professional network. There is wealth of knowledge in the Kansas City area on International Trade and International Business, and it has been so important to surround myself with people who know more than I do!

What else do you want to tell us about yourself that is generally not known?

I really love what I do, professionally. I think it is so important that I get to work for a company that mirrors my personal values of living in service and putting others first. Bestway International really focuses on providing the absolute best service possible for our partners and always doing our best without cutting corners.

What is the GKCFTZ?

The Greater Kansas City Foreign Trade Zone, Inc. (GKCFTZ) is a grantee of the national Foreign Trade Zone program. The GKCFTZ partners with businesses in the Kansas City area to help them establish Foreign Trade Zones (FTZ) for their manufacturing and distribution facilities. GKCFTZ supports economic growth and American competitiveness by allowing companies in FTZ’s to source cost-competitive assemblies from overseas without paying Customs duties for U.S. workers to use and incorporate into final products for domestic consumption or export.  In addition, companies can also competitively source other merchandise and consumer goods on the same basis (duty-unpaid) for U.S. workers to store, repackage and distribute throughout the U.S. or to export. The value-added to the U.S economy by the jobs performed by U.S. workers is a significant economic benefit to the U.S. and keeps the cost of these U.S. products and merchandise competitive with products and merchandise imported from foreign countries. It is through this process that trade zones create incentives for firms to maintain and expand business in the United States, as well as entice foreign companies to bring their business to the United States.

It’s Rich History

The Greater Kansas City Foreign Trade Zone has been around for a long time and is very rich in history. GKCFTZ has been the grantee since 1974 and was the first non-profit to be designated as such. It was in 1970 and 1971 that Marshall Miller published an article in the Virginia Journal of International Law on Foreign-Trade Zone Manufacturing. At the same time, Henry Bloch (President of H&R Block), Donald Hall (Chairman of Hallmark Cards) and Charles Kimble (Chairman of Midwest Research Institute) were looking at international trade in Kansas City for the Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. This group asked Marshall Miller to structure the program and obtain the approval for a Foreign-Trade Zone in Kansas City, which came to be in 1974.

Keeping up with the Times

Today, the GKCFTZ is one of the largest zones in the United States with over 450 million square feet of approved foreign trade zone space. This space includes both General Purpose and Subzone space. The GKCFTZ has two foreign trade zones that they sponsor; one in greater Kansas City, Kansas and the other in greater Kansas City, Missouri. Their Kansas zone serves the needs of nine counties and their Missouri zone serves 22 counties. Companies located in these zones employ over 3,000 full-time workers which generates $3.1 billion in added value activity, either to merchandise entering the United States or exiting through exports to other countries.

The GKCFTZ has a unique advantage because of their location in the center of the United States. The superior highway, rail, air, and water barge transportation infrastructure here in the Heart of America provides companies with access to a population base of 155.6 million consumers within a two-day time. This has caused the organization to become one of the leaders in international trade activity as America’s inland port solution.            

The Effect of the Pandemic

The looming question of how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected this organization has not gone overlooked by its leaders. It is not news that there have been supply chain issues as a result of the pandemic to those in international trade. Unlike other businesses, this has created a unique advantage for the GKCFTZ as foreign trade zones are beneficial for keeping inventory on hand because the goods and merchandise are admitted duty unpaid. Once goods or merchandise is in a foreign trade zone, it can be stored, processed, repackaged, transformed, destroyed or handled in various ways which provides value-added work before it leaves the foreign trade zone, which is when formal entry is filed.

Thanks to Mary Rooney and Alfred Figuly for sharing information about the Greater Kansas City Foreign Trade Zone, Inc.!

Contact:
Alfred J. Figuly, President, CEO
Greater Kansas City Foreign Trade Zone, Inc.
Phone: 816-474-2227
Mobile: 816-305-1378
alfiguly@gkcftz.com

Meet our intern, Kelsey Neufeld! She is a Senior at Baker University and is from Manhattan, Kansas. She will be graduating in December with two majors, International Business and Business Management along with two minors, Pre-Law and Spanish. Her interest in International Trade stemmed from a class taught by Narbeli Galindo where she discovered one way to quickly get connected to the the global business world, in which she hopes to pursue a career in, is through International trade! 

Kelsey will be working with the ITC Global TradeWins® Committee, writing for social media and marketing campaigns, and supporting educational and networking events. We are very excited to welcome her to the ITC family!

Ms. Ramboldt has been a member of the ITC since 2019 and joined in an effort by previous President Anh Sirridge to increase trade representation on the board. She was also motivated to join because of a love for international business and cultures. As with many in the industry, Ms. Ramboldt has traveled extensively. The countries she has been to include China, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, the U.K., Germany, Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina; each of them she has loved. Of these countries, her favorite one to travel to was China, her home country. It is its size combined with the landmarks and culture, people, and food that are so different from place to place. It is this combination of differences in China that continues to amaze her.  

Presently, Ms. Ramboldt is the Global Project and Solutions Manager at Staples Promotional Products. She helps to manage a global network of supplier partners that covers over 70 countries in North America, Latin America, the Asia-Pacific region, and the Europe-Middle East region. She has been in her current position since 2015 and has worked on many complex projects that involved sourcing and distribution to countries around the globe. Initially, Ms. Ramboldt worked in marketing but did not find it a satisfying job, because she felt that she did not have enough of an understanding of American culture. However, thanks to blooming US-China trade relations in the early part of this century, she found a job in Kansas City working for a manufacturer who wanted to import machinery parts from China. In this position, she learned about global sourcing and logistics which led to her first position at Staples as the Global Sourcing and Logistics Director. In her first 11 years there, she established a well-structured department that covers sourcing, import operations, compliance, export operations, and domestic freight. After this, she got involved in managing the Global Supplier network that covers markets in North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East. From this, she learned how to conduct business in many countries, develop relationships, learn and experience different cultures, and make connections for customers and suppliers where it makes sense. Some of the goals that Ms. Ramboldt has include continuing to learn about international business and culture, help facilitate more global trade and exchange, spark more global interests in herself, and travel more of the world.

Fun Facts and Advice:

Name three people (dead or alive) that you would invite to dinner:

What was the last book that you read?

Family Trust by Kathy Wang.

Who inspires you?

My father. My father is a man of wisdom, integrity, and endurance. He lived through the brutal cultural revolution in China, but remained hopeful, and taught me a lot of great life lessons that still benefit me today. He is always looking forward and is now learning to drive at the age of 71!

What advice would you give someone who wants to get into International Business/International Trade?

Have the understanding that people in different countries do things very differently. Don’t assume the American way on others. Be respectful and open-minded, stay curious, keep learning, and really use your mind to apply your knowledge at work.

What is something unique about you that is generally not known?

I am an enthusiastic "RVer". My family has been camping since the early 2000s, and we have upgraded from a folding tent to a motor coach over the years. We have been to more than half of the states in the U.S. and hope to cover all the continental states one day!

Joe Lohman has been a member of the ITC for 3 years now and joined to help fill a vacancy in the position of Treasurer, a role in which he still serves. As with many ITC members, Mr. Lohman was attracted to the ITC because of his enjoyment of international business, particularly in college, where those classes were his favorite. In between college and moving to Kansas City to work at Port KC, Mr. Lohman worked a with non-profit missionary agency that has 250 missionaries around the globe. He now works for Port KC and though Port KC is limited to the city limits of Kansas City, the ITC helps him to feel connected to the larger world around him. Mr. Lohman has spent a good deal of time traveling mainly through his mission trips, which included a 2-month trip in and around Narok, Kenya in 2017, and extending to Panama, Chiang Mai, Thailand, and Yangon, Myanmar.

Presently, Mr. Lohman works for Port KC and has been with the agency for 7 years. His current position is as the Director of Finance, which converges well with his interests in the intersection of accounting, finance, economics (the micro/local impacts of business more than macro), and international business. His career has unfolded in a way that intersects well with these interests, which has made him able to explore each of them in small and different ways. His faith has had an impact on the way that his career has unfolded, most notably through the mission trips he has taken. Being a part of ITC helps him increase his awareness of global trade in Kansas City, something he views as important to his career. His career goals are fairly open-ended and not well-defined, but they include an openness to continuing education with an acknowledgement that we always need to be learning. From this mindset, Mr. Lohman sees his goals less as career goals and more as self-development goals. This way of thinking led him to become a Certified Management Accountant (CMA), similar to a CPA, and to join the board of a local CMA chapter. He is currently also enrolled in the Development Finance Certified Professional program and would like to pursue a master’s degree after he has completed that program.

Fun Facts and Advice

Name Three People (dead or alive) that you would invite to dinner:

What is the last book that you read?

Trade Is Not a Four-Letter Word

Who inspires you?

Those with great experiences to share.

What advice would you give someone who wants to get into International Business/International Trade?

Throw your expectations about international business in the trash. Always be a learner.

What else do you want to tell us about yourself/what is something unique about you that is generally not known?

I led vocals and guitar in a band in college. The largest groups that I have played in front of was about 200 people.

President Alyson Schroer has been a member of the ITC for nearly 5 years and is currently serving as President until the end of August. Her company, The Scarbrough Group has been a member of the organization for much longer. She was motivated to join the ITC after attending the first Women in International Business Luncheon and enjoyed the event and meeting the people who were part of the organization. It was that day that she decided to become a member. As with many members of the ITC, President Schroer has traveled extensively, visiting Central America on several occasions. Her favorite place was Belize where she got to go snorkeling with her husband.

Currently, President Schroer is working as the Corporate Compliance and Consulting Manager at The Scarbrough Group in Kansas City. Originally beginning as a receptionist for the company, she continuously took advantage of more and more opportunities and as the company has grown, she has grown with it to the position that she is in today. She has been with the company since 2005.

Fun Facts and Advice:

Name three people (dead or alive) that you would invite to dinner:

What was the last book you read?

The Murmur of the Bees by Sofia Segovia.

Who inspires you?

Her parents. They are very hard working and taught me the importance of hard work in achieving what you want in life.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to get into International Business/International Trade?

There are so many different aspects to explore, so be comfortable exploring them. It is a constantly changing industry, and it is one of the reasons that I enjoy being involved in it. It is never the same.

What else do you want to tell us about yourself/what is something unique about you that is generally not known?

I love spending time with my family, my husband and our two kids, as well as the Corgi puppy. I love to spend a lot of time in the garden, planting, and enjoy harvesting in the fall to make my salsa.

Ms. Moore has been a member of the ITC since 2018, for a little more than 2 and a half years now. She joined the ITC, because at the time, she was starting out as a Remote Sales Representative and wanted to help build the brand locally for the company she was working for and give them good brand exposure through a local network, a need that she thought was met by the ITC. As with many in the international trade industry, she is well travelled, having been to the Caribbean, Peru, Honduras, and China. Of these places, China is the country that she enjoyed visiting the most, because it provided her with a direct, personal insight to the people with whom she works every day. Additionally, it gave her an appreciation for the life, the culture, and the hard work they do.

Presently, Ms. Moore is working with a tech company called Optimally, as a Senior Account Executive. Optimally is a technology company that brings big data to small and medium sized businesses to help with operations and managing expenses. Her role in this is introducing people to Optimally to see how Optimally can help their business. Her career has included a lot of hard work and making genuine connections with others is the reason she is successful today. Her current position came through a friend who knew the owner and a unique circle of women who through professional connections created this opportunity. The main goal in her career is balance between being a career-driven woman and all the other things that she is in life. Additionally, she wants to know that the things she is doing in her career are having a positive impact. Therefore, she works hard, taking her job very seriously and studying early on to be able to help her clients.

Fun Facts and Advice:

Name three people (dead or alive) that you would invite to dinner.

What was the last book that you read and what are you currently reading?

Presently, she is reading Women Who Run with Wolves, a kind of collection of fables about the ‘wild’ women who are in tune with themselves.
The last book that she read was called Educated.

Who inspires you?

In some ways, everyone, because the negative aspects that you see in others give you an opportunity to see what you do not want to be and want to avoid
Additionally, her mother, who was also a very career driven woman who had four children and basically did it all. She wants to emulate the happiness and love of her mother.

What advice would you give someone who wants to get into International Business/International Trade?

Definitely do it. To someone who wants to get involved, try to immerse yourself in the industry, in what is going on, talk to other people who have been in the business, especially in the aspect of it that you want to get into. It will make your journey easier. And stay engaged, it is an industry that changes on a regular basis. When you look at historical trends, breathe, the world will not end.

What else do you want to tell us about yourself/what is something unique about you that is generally not known?

She is a proud Delaware Lenape Indian, and is active in her tribe. Her grandmother has tried to teach her to do beading, and some of the other cultural aspects of Native American life.