Are You Ready to Export? Partners in Exporting 2025 Series

Wednesday Webinar with SBA Seattle District is an ongoing series of free, virtual, webinars covering a variety of topics to benefit small business owners. On the fourth Wednesday of each month is Are You Ready to Export? featuring conversations with different members of the Washington Export Outreach Team (WEOT). For 2025, the focus will be Partners in Exporting: how WEOT agencies collaboratively work together along with other organizations to support Washington businesses to sell their goods and services internationally

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This Month

Did you know that the U.S. Embassies and Consulates around the can help you meet new partners in foreign markets? Did you know the U.S. Department of Commerce has an International Trade Specialist that lives and works in your community to counsel companies on how to export? Join this “Are You Ready to Export” webinar to hear how the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service support U.S. exports in different capacities but work together to assist U.S. exporters succeed in international markets!

From matchmaking programs to market intelligence and commercial diplomacy, the Commercial Service offers an array of services to help your company discover and prosper in new markets.

In this webinar, you’ll hear from both a local International Trade Specialist at the U.S. Commercial Service office in Seattle, Washington, and from a Commercial Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia.

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Liz Laxague | Senior International Trade Specialist, U.S. Commercial Service - Seattle

Liz Laxague is a Senior International Trade Specialist for the U.S. Commercial Service in Seattle, Washington. Liz covers the Environmental Technology, Energy, Maritime, Automotive/Smart Mobility, Design and Construction, and Consumer Goods sectors for the state of Washington. In her career with the Commercial Service, Liz has had the opportunity to serve a temporary assignment at the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya as Acting Senior Commercial Officer, lead a water technologies trade mission to Peru, and present at an air pollution conference in Nepal. Liz recently led the U.S. Commercial Service's Environmental Technologies Global Team.

Prior to working for the U.S. Commercial Service, Liz was an Import Specialist for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in Charleston, SC. Liz began her career with the federal government when she served in the U.S. Peace Corps in Mauritania, West Africa as a Small Enterprise Development Volunteer. Liz is originally from North Carolina, where she graduated from the University of North Carolina at Asheville with a degree in French. She lives in Poulsbo, Washington with her husband, daughter, cat and two dogs.

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Lisa White | Commercial Attaché, U.S. Embassy - Bogota

Lisa White joined the Foreign Commercial Service (FCS) in 2020 and is currently Commercial Attaché at U.S. Embassy Bogota. She manages a team of five Foreign Service Nationals and oversees a portfolio that includes infrastructure, construction, ports, energy, mines, environment, agricultural machinery, education, travel and tourism, and SelectUSA. Her prior posting was at the U.S. Export Assistance Center in Seattle where she advised Washington businesses on how to grow international sales and developed special programs to accelerate women-owned businesses.

Lisa has more than 15 years of combined federal service with experience at three previous agencies. Previous roles include the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) where she worked as an Economic Development Specialist and Public Information Officer, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) where she worked as an Immigration Services Officer, and the U.S. Peace Corps where she worked as a Regional Recruiter. Prior to that, she served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guinea and Mali in West Africa where she supported small business development and developed French proficiency. Lisa graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a BS in Business Administration with a focus on marketing and communications. She is accompanied by her husband, Jeremy and their Mainecoon cat, Loki.