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Andrew Hammond, Oxford Products MD, was among 31 business leaders from the UK who accompanied Prime Minister David Cameron on a recent trip to South East Asia.
The four-day schedule covered Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam and Malaysia where Hammond got to meet the heads of state.
During the visit, the PM held several negotiations for major infrastructure contracts, and pushed the message: “the UK is open for business”.
Oxford Products boss Hammond met with several potential new supply contacts as well as both existing and new customers in each region.
“The potential for our business in this region is colossal, although it will take time to mature. Two wheels is the mode of transport, with 43 million motorcycle in Vietnam alone and countless bicycles."
According to the press statement, Hammond pressed home the two-wheeled agenda to his politician fellow travellers: “We could learn a lot from the two wheeled culture in these countries to help us to counteract traffic congestion and pollution in our major cities”. He talked over the social and economic benefits of the two wheeled industry to the UK before handing over a supporting Motor Cycle Industry Association-prepared dossier to the Prime Minister’s personal secretary.
The whistle-stop trade mission, although organised in its entirety by UKTI, is not funded by the UK tax payer.
Hammond said: “We were invited on the trip because of our capabilities and achievements as a business. However, all of the companies paid their own way, which is the way it should be. And yes, it was worth every penny.”
