Pictured from left to right: eBay Seller Mac Griffiths, eBay GR Team Member Katie Stevens, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams

On Tuesday, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams gave his State of the County address which highlighted his Global Cities Initiative. This regional export initiative, conducted in partnership with The Brookings Institution and supported by both the eBay Government Relations team and local eBay seller Mac Griffiths, highlights the powerful ability that online platforms have to enable small, tech-enabled business exporting. The Mayor had this to say about eBay’s contribution to the local economy:

“Global Cities helps business and civic leaders grow their metropolitan economies. The emphasis is on strengthening international connections and competitiveness. One of our great local partners is eBay. This tech giant operates like the virtual storefront for thousands of Utah small- and medium-sized businesses. eBay’s data is a bright spot for us in international trade. Here’s an amazing fact: For Utah eBay sellers (with sales of $10,000 or more) 98 percent of them exported products in 2014. That compares to only 4 percent of traditional U.S. businesses.”

During the event, the Mayor also highlighted Mac Griffiths, eBay’s Global Shipping Program, and referenced eBay’s new Utah export data that will be fully released later this year. Thank you to County Mayor McAdams and eBay seller Mac Griffiths for their commitment to eBay and increasing SMB exporting in the Salt Lake County region.  We look forward to the Metro Export Plan out next month!