"Business and Investment Opportunities in Slovakia"- a seminar for small and medium enterprises from the region of Tyrol, was held on the 29th of April, 2015. It took place at the premises of the Tyrol Economic Chamber in Innsbruck and served as an accompanying program for the opening of the photographic exhibition called "Wie die Quelle des Lebens" (As the Source of Life), by Mr. Rudolf Schuster, former President of the Slovak Republic.The event was organized by the Tyrol Economic Chamber, the Honorary Consulate of the Slovak Republic in Innsbruck and the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Vienna. The president of the Tyrol Economic Chamber, Dr. Jürgen Bodenseer, is also the Honorary Consul of Slovakia. The seminar was attended both by regional entities that have already had experience in doing business with Slovakia, as well as entrepreneurs who were new to the Slovak business environment.The companies interested in new business opportunities came from diverse economic sectors such as banking, pharmaceuticals, textile, engineering, winemaking and mining.As the host of the event, Gregor Leitner, Head of Foreign Trade of the Tyrol Economic Chamber, opened the seminar, which was followed by a foreword by H. E. Juraj Macháč, the Ambassador of the SR in Vienna.The Slovak business environment was presented by Oto Pisoň and Laura Meričková, the representatives of the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO), who introduced the reasons why to invest in Slovakia and also Thomas Spazier from Advantage Austria Bratislava presented at this event. After the presentations there was a Q&A session, where participants expressed their experience in doing business with Slovakia. During the discussions and individual meetings the regional entrepreneurs were mostly interested in the current development of the Slovak economy, investment aid, taxation, services of SARIO as well as relations between Slovakia and its neighboring countries. The event was a great opportunity for SARIO to present a positive image of the Slovak business environment abroad and to create personal contact with potential Austrian investors. It also strengthened the institutional cooperation between SARIO and the Tyrol Economic Chamber, Advantage Austria Bratislava (WKO) as well as the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Vienna, the Slovak Tourist Board and the Slovak Institute in Vienna.
