Four Illinois Companies Awarded the 2015 President's "E" Award

CHICAGO - U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzer presented the 2015 President’s “E” Award to 45 American companies that have made significant strides in expanding U.S. exports. Four of the companies honored, Garrett Popcorn, Sumac, MB Financial and the Illinois SDBC International Trader Center at Governors State University, are located in Illinois and have worked with the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity’s Office of Trade and Investment (DCEO-OTI) to expand and make their business globally competitive.

“U.S. exports are vital to the economic growth of Illinois.  It is great to see not only one but four Illinois companies receive an award of excellence,” said Director Jim Schultz. “I hope to see even more Illinois companies make significant strides in expanding U.S. exports as Illinois becomes more business friendly.”
 
Garrett Popcorn Holding Company and Sumac, an international consulting, construction and professional services firm, both of Chicago, received the “E” Award for Exports, which honors companies that achieve a sustained increase in export sales over a four-year period. MB Financial Bank, of Chicago, and the Illinois SBDC International Trade Center at Governors State University, of University Park, received the “E” Award for Export Services, which recognizes companies that assist and facilitate export activities.

In expanding their business globally, these four businesses worked with the DCEO-OTI Illinois’ State Trade and Export Promotion (ISTEP) program to grow their export sales. ISTEP provides Illinois’ small and medium-sized businesses with financial and technical assistance to increase exports. The program offers Illinois companies assistance with group trade missions, individual foreign market sales missions and product compliance certification for qualifying businesses.
 
The President’s “E” Awards were created by President Kennedy in 1961 to recognize businesses and organizations that contribute to the expansion of U.S. exports, and remain the highest honor a U.S. organization can receive for their contribution to U.S. exports.