The International Trade Branch, Ontario Ministry of International Trade, is organizing an Ontario Trade Mission to the Biotech Showcase, January 9-11, 2017, San Francisco, California. This Trade Mission will be able to accommodate a maximum of eight Ontario companies. Generally speaking, the Biotech Showcase is not suitable for companies considered to be very early stage.
The Biotech Showcase
The Biotech Showcase, managed by the EBD Group and Demy Colton Life Sciences Advisors, and now in its ninth year, will be of interest to companies seeking investment and partners. This is an investor-focussed partnering conference with the objective of offering private and public biotech companies a unique opportunity to meet with investors and biopharmaceutical executives. The 2017 event is expected to attract over 2,800 participants.
Why Attend
Participants in the Ontario delegation will have an opportunity to meet one-on-one with investors and potential partners, take the pulse on the latest biotech investment trends, hear from investment and company executives, present their company’s value proposition to investors, and network with peers and potential partners. San Francisco is the home of biotech, and the fact that this event is being held in the Bay area will provide you with an opportunity to engage in meetings before and after the Biotech Showcase.
In addition, and as most of you know, San Francisco is hosting the JP Morgan Conference during this period, which will provide participants with additional networking opportunities around town.
Biotech Showcase Program
The event will consist of one-on-one business partnering meetings; company presentations; plenary sessions; and networking events. Please visit the website for program details and updates at www.ebdgroup.com/bts
Business Partnering Meetings
The Business Partnering meetings will provide your company with an opportunity to have a 25-minute meeting with an additional five minutes to vacate the room. The Partnering meetings will be arranged using the EBD Group’s partneringOne system.
Company Presentations
Company presentations, part of the Biotech Showcase, are available on a competitive basis. The fee for private companies to present is US $1,750 for private companies, and US $3,750 for public companies, which you will have to pay separately. If you are interested in making a presentation, please visit the Biotech Showcase website and click on the “Presenters” tab. If you are interested in applying for a presentation slot, please let Patricia Cosgrove know and she will facilitate on your behalf.
Ontario Trade Mission Participation Fee
The participation fee for biotech companies to join the Ontario Trade Mission is C $800. The fee for service providers is C $1,400. This fee, which is non-refundable, will include: attendance at all conference sessions, participation in the partnering meetings, networking and social events and meals where specified. This fee covers the attendance for one company representative. Companies wishing to include additional staff may do so at the discounted Ontario rate of C $1,550, which is available until October 28th. The fee for service providers will be C $2000.
Application Form to join the Ontario Mission
If you wish to join the Mission, please mail your application and participation fee to me before Friday, October 28, 2016. Please submit your application with your cheque to me as soon as you are ready to commit. While the deadline is October 28th, spaces may fill up quickly. Please make your cheque payable to the Minister of Finance and mail it to Patricia Cosgrove at the address below. Please do not submit application forms without the fee.
Hotel Information
The Biotech Showcase will be held at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, San Francisco. A discounted conference room rate of US $699 (not including taxes) is now available . You may wish to consider hotels around the San Francisco airport as well as other options for accommodation for better pricing. This rate will apply from January 8-11, 2016. If you wish to make a reservation, you may do so via the online reservation form on the website.
Export Market Access Program (EMA)
Export Market Access (EMA) may be of assistance to your company. This program is an initiative of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, with support and funding from the Government of Ontario. It is designed to assist small and medium-sized companies expand their export sales in new foreign markets. If your company has five or more employees and annual sales of $500,000 or more, you may qualify for a grant covering up to 50% of eligible costs incurred to develop export sales. To explore this opportunity, please visit: www.exportaccess.ca
Follow-up with companies that participate in programs organized by the International Trade Branch
To assist in determining the value of its programs, the International Trade Branch will request at periodic intervals (6 months and 1 year), an estimate of actual dollar value of new business and/or actual dollar value of total new export sales, and/or investment your company achieved (along with a brief description, resulting from your company’s participation in this trade program).
Please note that the information provided will be treated as confidential, will not be released to and/or shared with the third parties and will solely be used to report the aggregated results from all program participants. This will also help us better evaluate our programs for business planning and service improvement purposes. Your cooperation is appreciated.
In closing, we hope this opportunity will be of interest to you. Please contact Patricia Cosgrove with any questions.
Patricia Cosgrove
Area Director, USA/Health Industries
International Trade Branch
Ministry of International Trade
900 Bay Street, Hearst Block, 5th Floor
Toronto, Ontario M7A 2E1
Tel: (416) 212-1030