This issue is sponsored by Hilton Hotels

Inside This Issue

Spring 2015 Newsletter

Annual General Assembly

Member News

2015 Interact Offers

U.S. Trade Fairs

9

7

New Members2

4

The U.S. Embassy and the American Lebanese Chamber of Commerce hosted the fourth “Taste of America” lunch and exhibition on April 28 at BIEL’s Pavillon Royal. “Taste of America” is a commercial event designed to showcase the goods and services of U.S. companies in Lebanon.

Over 500 guests, including Minister of Public Health Wael Abou Faour, Minister of Economy and Trade Alain Hakim, Minister of Culture Ronny Arayji, as well as business leaders, attended the event. Twenty-four U.S. companies, including KFC, Hardee’s, Burger King, Butterball, Chili’s, Clucksters, JBS, Domino’s Pizza, Dunkin Donuts, Budweiser, Jack Daniel’s, Patron, Southern Comfort, Pacific Seafood,

“Taste of America” Showcases American-Lebanese

Commercial Partnership

Jelly Belly, Magnolia Bakery, Frito-Lay, Ocean Spray, Shake Shack, McDonalds, Miller Brewing, Mountain Mudd, P.F. Chang’s, Creekstone Ranch, Pepsi, Tropicana, and Subway, served delicious American food and beverages to the guests. Products from seventeen American companies represented in Lebanon, including Ford, GMC, Cadillac, Corvette, Dodge, Jeep, Harley Davidson, Polaris, Gap, Columbia, Champions, 5-11, Apple, Segway, Mossberg, and Oakley, exhibited their products at the event. Local companies who represent those U.S. products include Itani, Mefosa, Vresso, Mercantile, Teletrade, Mike Sport, Azadea-Gap, Gargour, Rymco, Tewtel Group, Sports Forever, and Impex.

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6

2015 AmCham MENA Regional Council Conference Boosting Cross-MENA Business Ventures and FDI from the US

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New Members

American Lebanese Chamber of CommerceDirector Paola ChakhtouraAddress 1153 Foch Street Beirut Central DistrictP.O. Box 175093 Beirut, LebanonPhone/ Fax +961 1 985330-1Web www.amcham.org.lbE-mail info@amcham.org.lb

Board of Directors and Officers

Salim J. Zeenni ChairmanMaher Y. Beydoun VP for Public RelationsArslan M. Sinno VP for MembershipRichard A. Haykel VP for International AffairsWalid T. Assaf TreasurerNadim Kassar Secretary GeneralRabah Jaber Board MemberCarol Chammas Kareh Board MemberNadim Romanos Board MemberHani Raad Board MemberBarbara Batlouni Board MemberGaby Tamer Board MemberFady Khayat Board MemberElissar Farah Antonios Board MemberJean Riachi Board MemberBana Akkad Azhari Board MemberFadi Saab Board Member

Georges EliasChief Operating Officer &Share HolderRobert’s Group salTel: +961 9 211461www.rgsal.com

Robert’s Group s.a.l. is based in Lebanon and was founded in 1972 as Eliasco then renamed in 1991. It is active in Lebanon, the Middle East, and Africa.Its activities are specialized in family entertainment centers with turnkey solution services in a one-stop shop, including a franchise scheme. This includes advisory, distribution, operations, design, management, training and maintenance. It provides machinery, games, merchandising, debit card systems, management and F&B software for theme parks, water pParks, toddler centres, activity parks, bowling centres and malls.

Jamal SerhanChief Executive Officer Middle East North AfricaWarwick International HotelTel: +961 1 983799www.warwickhotels.com

Warwick International Hotels (WIH) was launched in 1980 with the purchase of Warwick New York. The WIH Group now includes more than 55 prestigious Hotels, Resorts & Spas worldwide located in city centers and resort destinations in the United States, Caribbean, Europe, Asia, the South Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. Mr Richard Chiu is the President and Founder of WIH. WIH acquired a hotel in Paris, and then expanded throughout Europe. It also owns famous resorts in the South Pacific & Asia; WIH operates in Bali and is still expanding in the Asia Pacific region.

Shadi TabbaraManaging Partner Operations and MarketingBrateTel: +961 3 837353www.brate.com

Brate is a discovery platform that reveals what Things and Places are trending online using big data analytics from 100 million online users. Once trending Things are revealed, Brate guides users to the nearest places where they’re available helping businesses generate new leads, increase footfall and drive sales. Brate also uses Business Intelligence tools to help businesses understand market trends and identify new opportunities. Brate is available in 10 markets across the MENA region including Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Erbil (Iraq); covers 300,000 places and is searchable in English, Arabic and French.

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In his remarks, American Ambassador David Hale highlighted the Taste of America as a perfect example to show American companies are eager to do business in Lebanon. He invited the Lebanese and American private sectors to work together to establish more partnerships which will help bring prosperity to Lebanon. Ambassador Hale also praised the Lebanese for being resilient entrepreneurs who

have succeeded and shined in places where challenges and risks are much higher than in Lebanon.

In addition to this 2015 event, “Taste of America” was organized three times in recent years. This year’s Taste of America has been organized with the support of Boecker, Pepsi, Ocean Spray, Dekerco, the U.S. Meat Export Federation and U.S. Beef.

Continued from P:1

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Member News

BBAC Celebrated Women throughout the Month of March

In appreciation of their valuable contributions in all that they offer to the community, BBAC (Bank of Beirut and the Arab countries) put into action its slogan of “Your Caring Bank” and stepped forward to celebrate women throughout the month of March, the month that includes both International Women’s Day and Mother’s Day. Throughout this month, BBAC presented all women in Lebanon a bouquet of special offers on a variety of products. Women were able to take advantage of the exclusive offers whenever they used their Diamond Card during the month of March or opened a Mother Account for their children. Moreover, they also enjoyed special benefits whenever they applied for the BBAC Personal loan, Car loan or Appliance loan.

BBAC offers the full range of banking services and products, all of which are tailored to the needs of its clients to make their lives easier and financially more planned and secure. The bank has made it a priority to effectively provide all necessary services in the communities it serves, reaffirming BBAC as “Your Caring Bank.”

Enjoy Lufthansa’s daily flight to New York, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles and many other destinations in North America - with punctual departures and convenient connections by choosing one of our great deals.

Enjoy Lufthansa’s Inflight Entertainment on medium-haul routes: on the Beirut Frankfurt flights, you can watch movies, listen to music and browse the Lufthansa World Shop – directly on your smartphone, tablet or notebook via the latest streaming technology.

Lufthansa will be offering you a new travel experience between Business Class and Economy Class on long-haul flights from Frankfurt: the Premium Economy Class. Whether you are travelling for business or pleasure, you will enjoy more personal space, more service and more extras. So you’ll be able to enjoy a thoroughly relaxing journey – both on the ground and on board.

And of course, not to be missed is our brand new First and Business Class on long-haul flights from Frankfurt.Contact Lufthansa Beirut via beyteam@dlh.de or 01 347 007.

Lufthansa’s Travel Experiences

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Under the Patronage of H.E. Wael Abou Faour, Minister of Public Health. The Continuing Education Center at the American University of Beirut headed by H.E. Dr. Hassan Diab Vice President of AUB Regional External Programs and in collaboration with CMCS Lebanon launched on Mar 26 the “Project Management Postgraduate Diploma- Health Focus.”

This Diploma focuses on advanced knowledge and skills in PM in relation to the health sector. Mr. Ziad Shaaban, Director of AUBCEC, presented the ongoing cooperation with CMCS Lebanon on this program. Eng. Saadi Adra, Managing Partner at CMCS Lebanon, praised the cooperation with the AUBCEC and discussed the importance of this program for all employees in the health sector. The conference included several words by lecturers in the program:

Project Management Postgraduate Diploma - Health Focus

• Dr. Shadi Saleh, Founding Director of CLI in the Health Systems AUB

• Mrs. Helen Samaha Nuehid, President of the Order of Nurses

• Mrs. Claude Khalil, President of PMI Lebanon Chapter

Afterwards Dr. Joseph Helo, Director of Medical Care at M.H., Representing H.E. Wael Abou Faour, Minister of Public Health, announced the ongoing projects by the Ministry to support the health sector in Lebanon like this one. Then Dr. Helo closed his note by stating that he will be an ambassador for this valuable program.

For more Information: Call CMCS: 01-345111 or 01-346111 Email: pmd@cmcs-mena.com

From Medibrex Inc. (a division of the Librex Group of companies), a new and revolutionary Teetanium Implant system is born and will soon be available around the world. The innovation in its design and the high quality materials used for Teetanium will be the luring strength to many professionals and patients alike in this field.

Medibrex is keen on making a difference in the industry far beyond the laboratory, and into the hands of its clients. Thus, it has assigned the best and most experienced designers and engineers from Europe to help develop the Teetanium implant system, and the result was a remarkable system that will soon make other implants seem too conventional. This cutting-edge implant with its comprehensive surgical tools is a world-class product that simplifies the clinician’s work and improves the patient’s life.

The Teetanium system made of German Titanium grade 4, is produced under the strictest supervision in

Teetanium Dental Implant now in Lebanon.

Spain. When no compromise on quality and innovation is allowed, each Teetanium implant undergoes a severe quality test and laboratory inspection with a step-by-step control over the entire manufacturing process. Before being packaged, a certified sterilization method is applied to ensure the patient’s safety.

The Teetanium motto is “Trying is Believing” and we take this opportunity to invite you to try it for yourself.

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US Trade FairsListing for International Buyer Program (IBP) 2015

http://export.gov/static/2015%20IBP%20TradeShow%20Flyer_Latest_eg_main_076522.pdf

Building and Implementing a Balanced Scorecard: Nine Steps to SuccessTM

The balanced scorecard is a strategic planning and management system used extensively in business and industry to align business activities to the vision and strategy of the organization, improve internal and

external communications, and monitor organization performance against strategic goals. It was originated by Drs. Robert Kaplan (Harvard Business School) and David Norton as a performance measurement framework to give managers and executives a more ‘balanced’ view of organizational performance.

The Balance Scorecard Institute’s award-winning framework, Nine Steps to SuccessTM, is a disciplined, practical approach to developing a strategic planning and management system. Emphasis is placed on “teaching clients to fish, not handing them a fish,” so the scorecard system can be sustained.

A key benefit of using a disciplined framework is that it gives organizations a way to ‘connect the dots’ between the various components of strategic planning and management, meaning that there will be a visible connection between the projects and programs that people are working on, the measurements being used to track success, the strategic objectives the organization is trying to accomplish and the mission, vision and strategy of the organization.

For information:info@newhorizons.com.lb

Event Location From ToWasteExpo 2015 Las Vegas, NV 6/1/2015 6/4/2015InfoComm International® 2015 Las Vegas, NV 6/17/2015 6/19/20152015 International Franchise Expo New York, NY 6/18/2015 6/20/2015Fancy Food Show (Summer) 2015 New York, NY 6/28/2015 6/30/20152015 Annual Meeting and Clinical Laboratory Expo of the American Association for Clinical ChemistryOutdoor Retailer Summer Market Salt Lake City, UT 8/5/2015 8/8/2015WEFTEC® Water Environment Federation Technical Exhibition and Conference 2015PACK EXPO Las Vegas 2015 Las Vegas, NV 9/28/2015 9/30/2015ASIS 2015 International 61st Annual Seminar and Exhibits Anaheim, CA 9/28/2015 9/30/2015Greater New York Dental Meeting New York, NY 11/27/2015 12/2/2015

Atlanta, GA 7/26/2015 7/30/2015

Chicago, IL 9/26/2015 9/30/2015

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AmCham 2015 Annual General Assembly

The American Lebanese Chamber of Commerce held its ordinary general assembly meeting on March 19, 2015 at Le Vendome Hotel. After a welcome word from AmCham Chairman Salim Zeenni, Secretary General Nadim Kassar presented an overview of the 2014 activities. Treasurer Walid Assaf then reviewed the financial status of the Chamber, followed by Nazih Borghol from Ernst and Young who presented the auditor’s report which was distributed to all attendees.

Chairman Zeenni discussed the upcoming 2015 events and explained the reasons for the postponement of the 2014 “Lebanon Day in the USA” which has now changed direction to focus on promoting Lebanese start-up companies and the thriving start-up ecosystem. Mr. Fadi Saab gave a presentation about the postponed event which is now entitled, “Start Up Lebanon” and will be held at The Plaza Hotel on May 21, 2015, followed by a gala dinner at The Rainbow Room of the Rockefeller Center. Members were invited to save the date and try to join the trip.

Director Paola Chakhtoura then gave a briefing about the AmCham MENA Council conference in Abu Dhabi on April 8, 2015 and invited members to join the delegation from Lebanon. She then updated the members about the AmCham Lebanon website which is in the process of being revamped and upgraded to become much more user- friendly. All members will be sent an email to check and edit their profiles on the new website to make sure all data is up-to-date.

The meeting was then opened for questions and suggestions from members. At the end of the meeting, attending members unanimously agreed that they had no objection or opposition to the current Board of Directors and the activities conducted and being organized.

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2015 AmCham MENA Regional Council Conference

AmChams from the MENA region including Lebanon, as well as leading business executives, entrepreneurs, thought leaders and government officials gathered on March 8, 2015 at The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi - Grand Canal, for the 2015 AmCham Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Regional Council Conference. The AmCham MENA Regional Council represents nine AmChams: Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine and Tunisia. This year, the event was hosted by AmCham Abu Dhabi, the AmCham MENA Council Chair, and it provided a platform to strengthen business ties between MENA region markets and the U.S. and is an annual highlight of the MENA business calendar.

Hisham A. Fahmy, CEO of AmCham Egypt, which is AmCham MENA’s Permanent Secretariat, remarked, “This year’s MENA Council Conference has been successful in looking at some of the ways in which the region’s private sector can work together and contribute positively to economic growth and to face commonly known realities. U.S. businesses operating in the region have an increasingly important role to play as real engines for growth, as they continue to hire and expand within our growing region. We as the MENA Council of regional AmChams will continue to advocate for an enhanced commercial relationship between the region and the United States.”

“AmCham Abu Dhabi is honored to host this year’s AmCham MENA Regional Council Conference,” said Matthew E. Byrd, Chairman of AmCham Abu Dhabi and Chair of AmCham MENA. “The MENA region accounts for less than 5% of total U.S. trade. AmCham members living across this region know well the rewards of doing business here. We are convinced that this trade number could skyrocket

Boosting Cross-MENA Business Ventures and FDI from the US

if business leaders followed long-term strategies - and not daily headlines - in accessing these lucrative markets. This conference surely will have a positive impact on commercial relations between the U.S., the U.A.E., and the wider MENA region.”

The four interactive sessions of the Conference, led by top industry executives, were:• Where are we now: Cross-MENA Trade &

Investment: Present Realities-Future Potential;• Angels, Accelerators, VCs & Private Equity: Hype

or Viable Funding Sources?;• U.S. Investment in the MENA Region: Boosting

Intra-regional Business Cooperation through Enhanced Supply Chain Systems; and

• U.S. & Regional Government / Private Sector Initiatives for Economic Growth.

The conference discussed the promotion of trade and investment between the United States and the Middle East North Africa region, advancing cooperation between these countries and the U.S., fostering increased collaboration amongst members, and institutionalizing their ongoing coordination with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Featured speakers included senior officials from regional trade and investment ministries, senior U.S. government officials from the region, presidents and chairs of MENA region AmChams, and heads of multinational companies, angel investor networks, venture capital and private equity institutions.

Top corporate sponsors of the event were the Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Etihad Airways, General Electric, MetLife, Middle East General Enterprise, PepsiCo, Sultan International Holding, The Coca-Cola Company, and The International New York Times.

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Interact 2015

Interact is intended to promote business between AmCham members and to stimulate intra-AmCham business relationships. The program allows you to inform fellow members in Lebanon, as well as members of the AmCham MENA Regional Council (AmCham Abu Dhabi, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Palestine, and Tunisia) of any business offers or benefits you are willing to give them exclusively. AmCham members are privileged to benefit from other MENA AmChams’ offers, making this an opportunity for members to present each other with products and services at favorable terms and conditions, hence increasing business between them.

Send your offers for 2015 to info@amcham.org.lb... and begin to interact!

Le GrayWe are happy to offer our below promotions to AmCham members and their esteemed companies.

Weekend escape (valid until 16 July 2015) (Valid on Saturdays and Sundays only)Beirut is one of the most dynamic cities in the world and what better way to enjoy the weekend

groove than from the most centrally located spot in town!

Book a Deluxe room with us at USD 325 + 10% VAT and benefit from a generous double upgrade to an Executive Suite. That’s not all. We will also include complimentary buffet breakfast for up

to two people and a guaranteed late check-out.

Whether you’re looking to party it up or simply wind down, it couldn’t be a more perfect package.

Spring into Summer (valid until 21 June 2015)In ancient Greece, April marked the celebration of spring and the blossoming of flowers and trees in preparation for summer… Make Le Gray, Beirut your threshold to spring into summer in the

most welcoming Mediterranean country of the Middle East – Lebanon! Let the beauty of the awakening nature revive your spirit while you enjoy the warming breeze, the outdoors, the sea,

the heritage, the art and the nightlife!

Book our Deluxe Room 40 sqm, and benefit from an upgrade to our comfortable large Premium Room 50 sqm for USD 320.00 + 10% VAT room only, per room/per night.

Book our Premium Room 50 sqm, and benefit from an upgrade to our wonderfully large Executive Suite 60 sqm in addition to your daily breakfast with our compliments.

USD 370.00 + 10% VAT Room and Buffet Breakfast for one/two persons, per room/per night.

Suite Stay: (valid until 16 July 2015)Book a Terrace Suite 60sqm and get upgraded to our very spacious Corner Suite 90sqm in

addition to your breakfast offered with our compliments. Package at USD 595.00 +10% VAT Room and Buffet Breakfast for one/two persons, per room/per night.

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LufthansaReach North American destinations with a short

connecting time and special economical fares for AmCham members with Lufthansa to North

America:

Destinations Prices with Taxes NEW YORK $ 942.00 BOSTON $ 956.00 MONTREAL $ 965.00 DETROIT $ 1,116.00 MIAMI $ 1,035.00

For more information, please don’t hesitate to contact us:

Phone: 01-347007Email: beyteam@dlh.de

HiltonAt Hilton Hotels Beirut you can unwind in our exquisite restaurants, invigorate your

body and mind in our 3,500 sq. Elixir Spa & Health Club, and spend memorable nights in

our elegant guest rooms and suites.

As a special offer to AmCham members we are extending a 15% discount in all our

restaurants -- Le Ciel, Jazz Bar and Venezia – in addition to Elixir Spa. You can also ask for the AmCham corporate room rates and benefit

from additional discounts.

For more information, contact Georges Karam, Director of Business Development, at georges.karam@hilton.com or +961 3

874849. Terms and conditions apply. This offer is valid

until the end of August, 2015.

Read this space in the upcoming issue of the newsletter...

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