Do you have your tickets for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit (APEC) in Hawaii yet? The State of Hawaii economic development and tourism teams are over the moon about this amazing opportunity and have been aggressively courting all the attending countries. Look for lots of care and hometown pride from both the President and First Lady. APEC United States 2011 will be a series of meetings of the 21 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation member economies held around the United States in 2011. It will culminate in the 19th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting held at the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu Hawaii from November 12–13, 2011. The United States last hosted an APEC summit at the 1993 summit. President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will host the other leaders and spouses.
One of the opportunities is to showcase the products of Hawaii with an incredible “Gift Bag”. Here is the RFP.
The APEC 2011 Hawaii Host Committee is seeking qualified vendors to supply and showcase their products or services for distribution in the form of hospitality gifts to 11,000 government officials, business leaders and global media during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Week events. A Request for Qualifications (RFQ) was issued by the Host Committee on July 12, 2011.
“In addition to showcasing Hawaii as a premier global meetings destination, APEC 2011 will present an opportunity for us to introduce Hawaii products and services to an international audience,” said Peter Ho, Hawaii Host Committee Chair. “Through this RFQ, the individual products and services supplied will further highlight Hawaii businesses and industries, as well as represent the aloha spirit and hospitality of our islands.”
The scope of work desired for this procurement is as follows:
Qualified and reliable suppliers must be able to supply goods or services in tangible product form in the following categories, including, but not limited to:
- Coffee;
- Chocolates/macadamia nut products;
- Hawaii snacks;
- Beverages;
- Soaps, lotions, oils and other bath products;
- Arts and crafts;
- Sports and/or beach items;
- Music;
- City guides (containing no third party advertising); and
- Gift certificates for goods or services ($50 minimum retail value amount, with no purchase required).
Product Specifications:
- Packaged goods must bear no loose-leaf collateral;
- No promotional trial size items; and
- Items are to be no larger than 22”L x 18”H x 3”D (Size of Hospitality Gift Bag).
- The selection of suppliers will be based on overall bids received and how each item contributes to the aggregate of products to be inserted into hospitality gift bags. Suppliers must be able to supply a minimum quantity of 500 items to be considered.
Interested suppliers can obtain a copy of the RFQ by emailing the APEC 2011 Hawaii Host Committee at rfq@apec2011hawaii.com. Please indicate the company name, contact name, contact phone, facsimile, address and email address. The deadline for RFQ submissions is July 29, 2011 at 4:00 p.m., with supplier selections being announced on August 15, 2011.
Here is some background on the Conference from from Wikipedia.
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a forum for 21 Pacific Rim countries (styled “Member Economies”) that seeks to promote free trade and economic cooperation throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Established in 1989 in response to the growing interdependence of Asia-Pacific economies and the advent of regional economic blocs (such as the European Union and the North American Free Trade Area) in other parts of the world, APEC works to raise living standards and education levels through sustainable economic growth and to foster a sense of community and an appreciation of shared interests among Asia-Pacific countries. Members account for approximately 40% of the world’s population, approximately 54% of world GDP and about 44% of world trade.
An annual APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting is attended by the heads of government of all APEC members except the Republic of China (Taiwan) which is represented under the name Chinese Taipei by a ministerial-level official. The location of the meeting rotates annually among the member economies, and a famous tradition involves the attending Leaders dressing in a national costume of the host member.
History
In January 1989, Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke called for more effective economic cooperation across the Pacific Rim region. This led to the first meeting of APEC in the Australian capital Canberra in November, chaired by Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Gareth Evans. Attended by political ministers from twelve countries, the meeting concluded with commitments for future annual meetings in Singapore and South Korea.