As Atlanta-based Conexx aims to live up to its preferred moniker as the top organization connecting the U.S. Southeast and Israel, it’s finding that more travel and personal touch is paying dividends.
The American-Israel Business Connector, as it’s formally known, had led than 10 business missions to Israel with a combined 150 participants in the last two years, building on new initiatives in places like South Carolina and Mississippi that complement its longtime stronghold here in Atlanta.
Conducting these trips and connecting with hundreds of Israeli companies wouldn’t work without office on the ground in Israel, a key tenet of a strategic plan adopted by the organization two years ago, President Guy Tessler said in an email notice to members and supporters.
Bracha Shlomo, a consultant and former trade officer at the Israeli consulate in Houston, has been heading up the office in Tel Aviv for two years, making introductions and even helping American retail outlets find Israeli-made products with which to stock their stores.
“The Israel office, through the efforts of Bracha Shlomo, has made a great impact on how Conexx and the Southeast are perceived by Israeli business leaders, companies, government entities and academic research institutions,” said Conexx chair and Atlanta attorney Benjamin Fink in the same email. “Conexx is now truly regarded as a go-to organization for Israelis wanting to connect to the U.S.”
The notice heralded the company’s strong connections across business and government, encouraging prospective and existing members to take advantage of its reach into a country with a small population but big impact on technology, startups and investment into Georgia.
“With Conexx, it’s all about who you know,” Mr. Tessler wrote.
He can be reached at gtessler@conexx.org.
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