In the mid 1970s, few people thought Toyota Motors of Japan would amount to much. Toyota just started to import cars into the United States. For the most part, Toyota products were described as junk, tin cans, rust buckets and unwanted. Toyotas were viewed as Japanese Yugos.

This year, Toyota will become the biggest and best auto manufacturer in the world, producing more cars and trucks than General Motors (who may, by some estimates, have to declare bankruptcy protection to stay in business).

There are numerous reasons why Toyota has overcome General Motors. These include Toyota’s ability to produce a car people want that does not break, and their uncanny ability to see far off markets and exploit them for the good of their company and shareholders. Clearly, Toyota had many internal discussions before entering the export market. These discussions led to the conclusion that the risks of entering the export market were plentiful but the rewards were huge.

Had Toyota refrained from exploiting the export market, the company would not be on the brink of being named the number one car company in the world.

But what does Toyota’s success have to do with Northwestern Wisconsin and Northeastern Minnesota? Simply: our economy can grow by taking advantage of exporting our goods and services. Minnesota already exports 16.1% of its total gross domestic product (GDP), which far exceeds the national average of 12.1%. Our region is ripe to explore and capture world wide markets.

But to capture these markets, companies must have plans that make sense. The Chamber is working to help you export. As such, we are focusing upon bringing you export education, export research, and tools to help you connect with world wide markets.

Next week, Matthew Abbott of the Minnesota Trade Office, an experienced marketer of high tech medical devices, will give a short and informative seminar regarding export basics. This seminar is a quick and easy way to find out if exporting is for you. Click here for information or to register.

Who knows? Maybe there is a company in our region who will become the biggest and best in the world. We’ll never know if no one is willing to take a risk.