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PRESENTED BY CONFEDERATION OF SWEDISH ENTERPRISE

Why family companies need free trade and TTIP

Way up north by the Arctic Circle, a Swedish family has been making world-class windows for more than 30 years. Bullet proof, fire proof, sliding in all directions – they do it all. They just can’t export to the US – not without a free trade agreement.

Why family companies need free trade and TTIP
Svalson CEO Maud Spencer. Photo: The Confederation of Swedish Enterprise

Maud Spencer started working at Svalson 15 years ago but she has always been surrounded by Svalson glass.

Svalson is a family company. It was founded by my father and his brother-in-law, and I took over as CEO about ten years ago,Spencer tells The Local.

Now my brother and my cousin work here, and during the summer my two sons come and work here as well.

It’s a small company, employing just about 40 people in the small northern Swedish town of Öjebyn, but its been going strong for 35 years now, thanks to its one-of-a-kind products.

We are world leaders when it comes to sliding windows,” Spencer says. “We have totally changed the way a reception looks, and all of our windows are tailor-made.

In fact, Svalson is the creator of the only fireproof automatic sliding window in the world a niche market, but nevertheless an important one, Spencer says. The window has been tested and approved by European standards and is accepted throughout Europe.

That means we can sell it over the world Australia and Japan accept it as well.


Svalson glass wind barriers. Photo: Svalson

Theres just one notable exception: the US.

America doesnt accept it,” Spencer says. “If we want to sell it in America then we need to do the tests again in the US.

That would involve flying not just staff but the massive windows themselves to the US and would cost at least €32,000.

For a big company that wouldnt be a problem at all,” Spencer muses. “But for a family company of our size, its an issue.

Svalson has always been an international company, selling to other European countries very early on. But for decades they have been forced to avoid the US.

We always received lots of requests from the States but we said no,” Spencer explains. “It’s just too complicated.

Recently, the company has discovered a loophole that allows them to reach some customers in the US: exporting via a distributor in Canada.

The United States’ northern neighbour accepts the standards and certification of Svalsons products. Yet it’s a cumbersome and expensive way to export – when they should be able to go direct to their American customers:

They dont have to pay the duties or get stuck with paperwork like we do, but they definitely hike the price. It becomes much more expensive for the end user.

In a sense, the Canadian loophole illustrates the absurd nature of many of the trade and regulatory barriers that exist between Europe and the US. Standards are similarly high on both sides of the Atlantic, but are not mutually recognized.

For small businesses like Svalson and the end customers on the other side of the Atlantic TTIP would be a game changer, saving both customers and manufacturers time and money.

TTIP would make a huge difference for small companies,” Spencer says. “It takes away the bureaucracy and would speed up customs, and obviously it would help with the prohibitive costs.

Accessing the American market would double not only sales for the company, but the size of their team as well.  And it would be only natural, Spencer says.

We really would like to take our products to the US. We have the same values, the same needs. Why not?

Spencer says that Svalson would gladly accept US standards. But then it should be enough to allow their products through without additional costly testing.

We can very easily adjust to new standards as long as we know what they are. So that is what we need, to have the same standards and not have to go through expensive tests so many times. Its a shame to burn so many of your products,Spencer remarks.

And its a two-way street, the Swede adds. European companies could learn a lot from American regulatory standards as well.

For example, one of our products is a railing we use for balconies,” Spencer explains. “But in the US it is only allowed for use on the ground floor because the top of it is flat. In the US railings have to be round so you cant put a glass on it or something.

Spencer says thats exactly the type of standard that Europe should adopt as well.

We would make safer and better products if we could use the best of both standards.

This article was produced by The Local in partnership with Svenskt Näringsliv, The Confederation of Swedish Enterprise.

TRADE

Norway and UK strike post-Brexit trade deal

Norway and the United Kingdom have struck an agreement on a free trade deal, the Norwegian government announced on Friday.

Norway and UK strike post-Brexit trade deal
Erna Solberg outside 10 Downing Street in 2019. (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN / POOL / AFP)

Negotiations over the agreement have been ongoing since last summer, and the Norwegian government said that the deal is the largest free trade agreement Norway has entered into, outside of the EEA agreement. 

“The agreement entails a continuation of all previous tariff preferences for seafood and improved market access for white fish, shrimp, and several other products,” the Ministry of Trade and Industry said in a statement.  

One of the sticking points of the negotiations was Norway wanting more access to sell seafood in the UK, while the UK wanted more access to sell agricultural products like cheese.

The latter was a problem due to Norway having import protection against agricultural goods. 

“This agreement secures Norwegian jobs and value creation and marks an important step forward in our relationship with the UK after Brexit. This is a long-term agreement, which at the same time helps to accelerate the Norwegian economy,” Prime Minister Erna Solberg said in a statement.  

 The United Kingdom is Norway’s second most important single market, after the EU. In 2020 Norwegian companies exported goods worth 135 billion kroner to the UK and imported around 42 billion kroner of goods from the UK. 

Norway has given Britain 26 quotas on agricultural products, but not for mutton and beef. The agreement does not increase the UK’s cheese quotas, state broadcaster NRK have reported. 

The agreement will still need to be signed by both the Norwegian and UK parliament. 

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