From March 28 to April 1, Houston Airports joined Mayor Sylvester Turner and a City delegation on a “Houston Week” marketing campaign in Mexico to reinforce Houston’s position as the top city for global trade, tourism, business, and leisure travel from Mexico.
Mario Diaz, Houston Airports Director, Luis Avilés, Sr. Executive, Air Service Development, and Augusto Bernal, Public Information Officer, joined Mayor Turner, Houston First, and the Greater Houston Partnership for Houston’s first international trade mission since the COVID-19 pandemic to Mexico, with well-received stops in Monterrey and Mexico City.
“We chose Mexico as the destination for our first international trade mission since the pandemic because we recognize the critical importance of the business and tourism ties between the two regions,” Mayor Turner said. “Houston Week allowed us to strengthen our diplomatic ties by engaging in business development and corporate and travel trade meetings that included an experiential evening event that showcased the very best that our city has to offer. I want to thank Houston First, the Greater Houston Partnership, and the entire delegation for representing Houston in an exceptional manner.”
The mayor headed the delegation’s leadership team which included Diaz, City of Houston Chief Development Officer Andy Icken, Houston First President and CEO Michael Heckman, Greater Houston Partnership Senior Vice President and Chief Economic Development Officer Susan Davenport, and Houston City Council Member David Robinson.
Mexico is Houston’s largest trade partner and plays an important role in the city’s economy. Many Mexico-based companies have opened facilities in Texas because of a strong economic concentration in such areas as manufacturing and food products, according to the Texas Economic Development Corporation.
Diaz said that the economic development mission nurtured the strong strategic partnership with Mexico that remains vital for Houston Airports and for the City of Houston.
“Houston Airports’ already-robust relationship with Mexico grew even stronger during the pandemic,” said Diaz. “Today we have more flights to Mexico than in 2019 and Bush Airport continues to offer more flights to Mexico than any other airport in the U.S. Houston is one of the leading markets in the U.S. by the number of Mexican destinations served and the number of Mexican visitors received per year.
“Mexico is Houston’s largest market for international visitation and accounts for 70 percent of international travelers coming to the city,” Heckman said. “The intention of developing a unified tourism and trade delegation for the inaugural Houston Week was to achieve high impact for Houston and build upon relationships in Mexico through extensive media coverage, generation of social media buzz, and by connecting with key diplomats, business leaders, and travel trade professionals.”
Among many highlights, the delegation also participated in a global trade roundtable discussion with Mexico’s Minister of Economy Tatiana Clouthier.
They also toured the Tecnologico de Monterrey campus, a highly renowned academic institution known for its innovation-led academic model that excels in the fields of engineering, technology, social sciences, and management.
As the Houston Spaceport continues to attract aerospace companies and talent to its grounds, Diaz expressed an interest in exploring educational and professional development opportunities between Tecnologico de Monterrey and higher education institutions in the Houston area that are involved with the Houston Spaceport, such as San Jacinto College, Rice University and the University of Houston Clear Lake.
“The proximity between Monterrey and Houston is ideal for us to foster talent and resources that can support the rapid expansion of the Houston Spaceport. We are already planning to go back to Monterrey with leaders from Houston-based colleges and universities to explore ways for us to tap into the vast possibilities of exchanging knowledge, training, and talent with a distinguished university like Tec de Monterrey.” Diaz said.
Mayor Turner, Director Diaz, and the Houston Week leadership met with Monterrey Mayor Luis Donaldo Colosio Riojas. The Houston leadership delegation also joined the governor of Nuevo León in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Houston First and the State of Nuevo Leon to strengthen existing ties between the State of Nuevo León and the City of Houston.
Source: Houston Airport System
