Foreign Companies Receive Support from GPI & The Entire Community

Greater Portland sees the link between exports and FDI as a three-step interaction, as highlighted in the graphic here. This interaction is enhanced by an added element that extends beyond industry: Greater Portland’s unique excellence of place, which has an incalculable influence on the influx of talent and the attraction of FDI.

As firms in a region move through this cycle, the cluster matures and moves from a position of early, nascent innovation to emerging excellence and, finally, established excellence. During this maturation process, clusters often develop innovations, spinning off new sub-sectors that go through their own maturation process.

The fifty-year history of Nike, headquartered in the Beaverton area, perfectly illustrates how a lightning strike of innovation can spark a cluster rich with talent and technology that drives investment to a region and furthers innovation through spinoff clusters.

Adidas

In the 20 years since this German company committed to Portland, Adidas has become a star of our athletic and outdoor industry cluster. Their North American headquarters is in the heart of the city, where 900 employees working in design, sales, operations, information technology, finance, marketing, human resources and more, contribute to its global operations.

With 200 hires just in the past year and a jobs multiplier effect thanks to its work with Portland's leading independent contractors and service providers, Adidas makes a significant contribution to the local economy. Just as important, the company cultivates a strong community presence, partners with schools and nonprofit organizations, and demonstrates its invaluable commitment to developing the next generation of talent here in Portland.

Click here to view a video on why Adidas selected Greater Portland to grow their operation.

Vestas Americas

Vestas is the only global energy company dedicated exclusively to wind energy, and they moved their American headquarters from California to the Greater Portland Region in 2002. With more than $1 Billion in US investments, and 1,200 company-wide employees, the company is a leader in identifying effective solutions towards energy independence, with its core business focused on the development, manufacturing, sale and maintenance of wind power plants.

Vestas leverages the strength of its business operations by building out a supply that builds on a strong workforce and manufacturing capacity within the regions where they operate. This creates a ripple effect that leads to additional jobs, start-ups and support businesses for local growth and opportunities, with a sizable portion of the jobs targeted towards highly educated engineers, financial professionals and business development.

Click here to view a video on why Vestas selected Greater Portland to grow their operation.

Click here for additional FDI success stories from Daimler North America, Shimadzu and Simple.

Business Oregon and the Washington Department of Commerce work with the federal EB-5 immigrant investor visa program to connect foreign investors to individual investment opportunities in the Greater Portland region. Immigration Attorneys can also assist and can be found at the American Immigration Lawyers Association Oregon Chapter and the American Immigration Lawyers Association Washington Chapter.

Greater Portland is geographically close to key East Asian countries and connected by rail and truck to the rest of the U.S. including the largest market in the U.S. – California.

Greater Portland has a nonstop flight to Tokyo on Delta Air Lines, which connects to flights across Asia.

Greater Portland is well connected to Europe with a year-round nonstop flight to Amsterdam on Delta Air Lines and three summer seasonal nonstop flights on Icelandair to Reykjavik, Delta Airlines to London, and Condor Airlines to Frankfurt.  All three connect to flights across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Air Canada has summer seasonal nonstop flights to Calgary and both Air Canada and Alaska Airlines have nonstop flights to Vancouver, British Columbia. Volaris has nonstop flights to Guadalajara, Delta Airlines & AeroMexico have nonstops to Mexico City, and Alaska Airlines has nonstop flights to Puerto Vallarta and San José del Cabo.

Greater Portland is positioned favorably in the Pacific time zone so that at the start of the day at 8am in Greater Portland it is 4 pm in the UK and 5pm in Continental Europe, and at the end of the day in Greater Portland at 5pm it is 8am in China and 9am in Japan and Korea.

In Greater Portland, 292,000 people, or 12.6% of the total population, are foreign-born according to U.S. Census figures. Approximately 36% are from Latin America (mainly Mexico), 34% from Asia, 10% from Europe, with the rest from Africa, Oceania, and North America. For details please see the Greater Portland Pulse. According to US Census Bureau data, international migration amounted to 19% of the total population growth in Greater Portland from 2003-2013.

Greater Portland welcomed approximately 1.3 million international visitors in 2014, with Canada, China, Japan, Korea, Australia and EU countries leading the way, according to Travel Portland. In addition, 4,930 international students studied at colleges and universities in Greater Portland in 2008-2012 (not counting community colleges), according to the Brookings Institution. After graduating, 58% of those students who received work authorization under the Optional Practical Training program stayed to work for a Greater Portland employer between 12-29 months, the 10th highest rate nationally, an indication of the desirability of the region as a location that attracts and retains diverse, educated, talented people.

• Alliance Française de Portland
• British American Business Council of the Pacific Northwest
• Confucius Institute at Portland State University
• French American Chamber of Commerce of the Pacific Northwest
• German American Society Portland
• Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce
• Japan-America Society of Oregon
• Korean Society of Oregon
• Northwest China Council
• Oregon Consular Corps
• Oregon Korea Foundation
• Shokookai (Japanese Business Association of Portland)
• WorldOregon

• Lan Su Chinese Garden
• Portland Japanese Garden

Arabic

• Portland Public Schools: 6th-8th grade one school, 9th-12th grade one school.

Chinese (Mandarin)

• Beaverton School District: K-8 charter school.
• French American International School: The private 6th-8th grade curriculum is taught in French, German, Spanish, or Mandarin Chinese.
• The International School: Private preK-5th grade curriculum is taught in Spanish, Mandarin Chinese or Japanese through the International Baccalaureate program.
• Northwest Chinese Academy: Private preK-8th grade curriculum is taught in Mandarin Chinese.
• Portland Public Schools: K-5thl, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th schools.
• Springleaf Chinese School: Nine levels of Chinese language and art classes are offered on Saturdays.
• Vancouver Public Schools: K-5th and 6th-8th grade schools. 
• Chinese American International School: Private pre-k and kindergarten Chinese immersion education and culture program and an After School program for 1st grade and older.

French

• French American International School: Private preK through 8th grade has an internationally-focused curriculum with an elementary school French immersion program accredited by the French Ministry of Education, and middle school immersion programs in French, German, Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese.
• The International Leadership Academy: Private PreK-5th grade curriculum is taught in French.
• L’Etoile French Immersion School: Private PreK-5th grade curriculum is taught in French.
• Le Monde French Immersion Public Charter School: Kindergarten through the fourth-grade curriculum is taught in French. An additional grade level will be added each subsequent school year, ultimately offering instruction through 8th Grade.

German

• French American International School: Private 6th-8th grade curriculum is taught in French, German, Spanish, or Mandarin Chinese.
• German International School Portland: Private PreK-5th grade curriculum is taught in German. It is one of only seven North American German Schools Abroad that is accredited by the Federal Republic of Germany’s Central Office for Schools Abroad.

Japanese

• The International School: Private PreK-5th grade curriculum is taught in Spanish, Mandarin Chinese or Japanese through the International Baccalaureate program.
• Portland Public Schools: K-5thl, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th schools.
• Sakura-Kai: Private school provides full immersion Japanese language, math, and cultural education to children ages 4 and older on Thursday evenings.
• Sheridan Japanese School: Public 4th-12th grade school offers increased exposure to the Japanese language and culture but is not an immersion school.

Korean

• Oregon Korean School: Private school teaches Korean language, culture, and history in classes on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
• Canby School District: 6th-8th grade one school.

Russian

• Portland Public Schools: K-5thl, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th schools.

Spanish

• Beaverton School District: K-5th, K-8, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th grade - one school in each age group, along with one charter school.
• Canby School District: K-5th grade school.
• Evergreen Public Schools: K-5th grade two schools.
• Forest Grove School District:  K-4th grade two schools and 5th grade one school.
• French American International School: Private 6th-8th grade curriculum is taught in French, German, Spanish, or Mandarin Chinese.
• Hillsboro School District: K-6th grade eight schools, 7th-8th grade one school, and 9th-12th grade one school.
• The International School: Private preK-5th grade curriculum is taught in Spanish, Mandarin Chinese or Japanese through the International Baccalaureate program.
• Lake Oswego School District: K-5th grade one school.
• Newberg School District: K-5th grade one school.
• North Clackamas School District: K-5th grade two schools.
• Oregon City School District: K-5th grade two schools.
• Portland Public Schools: K-5thl, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th schools.
• Tigard-Tualatin School District: K-5th grade two schools.
• Vancouver Public Schools: K-5th grade two schools, 6th-8th grade two schools, and 9th-12th grade one school.
• West Linn-Wilsonville School District: K-5th grade two schools.

Vietnamese

• Portland Public Schools: K-5th grade one school.