Costa Rican Trade & Investment Board
President Laura Chinchilla of Costa Rica at the NYSE ringing the bell.
The Challenge
Costa Rica had a highly-educated workforce, but not enough high-paying jobs for its wealth of skilled citizens. In order to offer a broader range of employment opportunities for this well-trained labor pool, the Costa Rican Trade and Investment Board worked with DCI to develop and execute a focused marketing campaign to help the country attract more electronics and high-tech manufacturers, while raising Costa Rica’s profile among the global business community.
The Results
- DCI directed a prospect luncheon and evening reception for 90 corporate executives in Silicon Valley, where Costa Rica’s president and senior executives from Intel – which had recently made a $500 million investment in the country – were featured speakers.
- In key markets throughout the United States, DCI arranged prospect missions that resulted in more than 40 face-to-face meetings with targeted manufacturing companies. These efforts ultimately led to five companies visiting Costa Rica, two of which subsequently announced decisions to locate major facilities in the country.
- To highlight the country’s investor-friendly business climate, DCI arranged for President Chinchilla to ring the Opening Bell of the New York Stock Exchange and meet with journalists from every top U.S. business publication. As a result of this New York mission, DCI landed a series of positive media hits in CNBC, CNN, CNN en Español, Bloomberg News, The Associated Press, Thomson Reuters and others.
