Recent Work - BelCham
BelCham: US Market Entry & Global Expansion
BelCham
Having lived in 7 countries, I know that entering a new country is extremely challenging. Few markets are more complicated for foreign businesses than the USA. As a multilingual American that has lived, studied and worked on opposite ends of the world, I love helping foreign people and businesses enter and thrive in the USA.
I was hired by BelCham, the Belgian-American Chamber of Commerce, in 2017 to assist companies growing in the USA successfully navigate entering the USA, making their first sales and first hires in the US, and thereby creating new jobs in the USA and in Belgium as well as around the European Union. BelCham was founded as a not-for-profit in New York State in 1919 after King Albert made a thank you tour after WWI, the first visit of a monarch to the USA.
As an American, I was constantly impressed what Belgian education afforded to the Belgian people and the Belgian business acumen. Belgium was the 9th foreign investor in the United States – ahead of China and Saudi Arabia in 2017 – despite being a 37th the population of the USA. On the daily basis at BelCham I met with different entrepreneurs, big businesses, and organizations planning to enter the USA.
Specifically, I had the opportunity to work with approximately 200 entrepreneurs and startups who were either planning to enter the USA, had recently entered the USA, or were building their teams in the USA. I would advise founders and CEOs about the US market, trade policies, where to setup, HR regulations, sales tactics, marketing localization, negotiating, US immigration, entity structurization, hiring, taxation, and raising finances. I would also network non-stop at the local and national level in the US with the goal of facilitating the first commercial relationships in the US for the Belgian startups. A first contract in the USA makes all the difference. For many entrepreneurs, I was the first American they could truly “trust” that just had their interest in mind. Building this level of confidence with them was incredibly meaningful for me. I needed to learn who they were and what was their company’s story to communicate to US audiences and position them for success.
At the same time, I had a number of other responsibilities including managing the non-profit organization’s budget and finances, delivering the annual audit, coordinating with embassies/multilateral organizations and the diplomatic network, and leading the organization’s IT operations. As an organization, we also organized 100 events a year across New York and San Francisco, operated a J-1 visa program placing 200 young talents in traineeships in the USA, and operating the first coworking spaces for Belgian startups outside the Benelux (located in New York and San Francisco).
Some of my major achievements at the BelCham included:
- Organizing and hosting a roundtable between Alexander De Croo (current Belgian Prime Minister) and 16 European-American startup CEOs
- Bringing together 19 European-American bilateral trade organizations to create an event series promoting European innovation and startups in the USA, our European-American Startup Pitch Night series
- Developing the concept and securing initial partnerships and funding for the Benelux Catalyst, a US-focused startup accelerator for Benelux Startups. This program is partially financed by the Luxembourg Ministry of the Economy and LuxInnovation
- Researching 100 years of history of the Belgian-American Chamber of Commerce and Belgian-American trade. Researching this 100 page project took me from the archives of the BelCham, to the New York City Archives, Library of Congress, Belgian Royal Palace and Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
European Pitch Night
In 2018, I brought together 19 bilateral trade organizations in the New York City area to create a program promoting European startups to the New York ecosystem. This collaborative European initiative brought a new platform to promising EU startups growing in the USA.
European Pitch Night - San Francisco
While a lot of European startups choose New York to enter the USA, it is undoubtable that Silicon Valley is still a major destination for innovative startups. Further away from European shores, European collaboration is all the more important. BelCham also organized European Pitch Nights in San Francisco and I was happy to help work on this collaborative program.
Belgian-American Entrepreneurship Awards Gala
Am I the only one that misses getting fancy in the world of Covid? When social distancing wasn’t de jure, we all used to get together. Each year the Chamber of Commerce would organize a high level gala to promote bilateral trade relations. I was involved in inviting and coordinating with dignitaries (Prime Minister’s Office, Corporate Leaders/CEOs), developing press materials in English and French and coordinating the donation drive for these 300-person events. I also was heavily involved in planning the centennial anniversary gala program.
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Project - Charlotte & Margaret
Series Proposal - Charlotte & Margaret
In Luxembourg at the end of World War I, the Spanish Flu pandemic is raging.
24-year-old Margaret falls in love with an American soldier. To offer her family a better future, she will journey alone to join him in the US Wild West. But her American dream is not what she expects.
In Luxembourg, Charlotte will give her all to assume her role as Grand Duchess. Eventually she will also end up in exile in the USA in order to save her country.
24-year-old Margaret falls in love with an American soldier. To offer her family a better future, she will journey alone to join him in the US Wild West. But her American dream is not what she expects.
In Luxembourg, Charlotte will give her all to assume her role as Grand Duchess. Eventually she will also end up in exile in the USA in order to save her country.
Both women will face different challenges and overcome incredible odds to save what matters most to them.
Their two lives could not seem further apart. Yet it is with the same strength of character, courage and values of the heart that these two heroines will overcome every hurdle.
Despite what initially feels like a nightmare, Margaret’s American dream will prove to be a model of success. And Charlotte will prove to be a sovereign who could both inspire the most modest of her citizens and play a leading role in the outcome of the Second World War.
Charlotte & Margaret (working title) is a mini-series based on these two women’s true stories.
Status: Series Bible & Episode Outlines Completed (50 Pages)
French Text Written by: Sylvie Lehmann & Louise Dubois
Based on an original work by: Daniel Atz
Interested to learn more? Click here to get in touch.
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Recent Work - LuxCitizenship
LuxCitizenship.com
LuxCitizenship
When I recovered Luxembourgish nationality through my ancestry in 2013, I realized that there were no materials explaining the process for someone that didn’t speak French. I wrote the first model application letters and program that was widely shared around the English-speaking part of the internet.
By November 2016, I became aware that the political changes happening around the world and specifically the USA would drive more Americans to look for dual citizenship and that I could use my knowledge to share life changing opportunities with others.
LuxCitizenship was originally launched as a side project. I leveraged my unique background in branding, marketing, web design, graphic design, entrepreneurship and international relations to create every part of the business myself, from the website, to all of the advertising, all of the articles, all the video content, all the management, and all the citizenship procedures. Over time, I have been able to create a well oiled and automated machine, driven by SEO, the website brings about 100 qualified inquiries a month.
The prediction that the US political shift would drive demand would prove justified. Across 2017, we only received a few inquiries. Then in October 2017, RTL Luxembourg broadcast a report about all the Americans applying for dual citizenship and that there may be a reason behind this – as there was a huge increase after November 2016.
I can’t say for sure if what came next was because I was featured in the report or not. But what I can say is that after only receiving a few inquiries in the year, on Saturday, December 23rd, 2017, my phone exploded with inquiries. This is both peculiar because it was a Saturday and two days before Christmas. So what was the cause? The only immediate guess I can make is that the day before the Senate passed the major reform of the US tax code. This was the only major legislative achievement of the Trump presidency before Covid.
Whether or not politics inspired the spark, I will never know. However, it was like a rocket lifting off into space after this date. In the first six months of 2018, I signed over 300 new clients. Growing from less than 10 in the previous year, it was huge growth.
While 2019 was less active by comparison, 2020 was by far the largest year for the organization, adding over 350 new clients. This most likely is also attributable to the current events in the United States and the world. In 2020, a New York Times editorial claimed the new status symbol of the US middle class was to go into the attic and find pictures and documents of great-grandparents to figure out where it was possible to get a foreign passport.
The outcomes have been much more concrete. We have experienced two years with over $150,000 in sales, allowing LuxCitizenship to also create work opportunities in diverse communities and impacting the lives of over 700 North American clients.
But our reach is so much further than just helping 700 individuals obtain a dual citizenship. We are also educating and crating connections with families and professional opportunities for these 700 people as well as their families and spouses (56% of clients are married). In doing so, we are forging a strong transatlantic ecosystem and spreading awareness about Luxembourg to the communities around these individuals.
Some particular achievements I am proud of at LuxCitizenship include:
-I helped Arno Meyer, one of the world’s foremost professors and writers on the Shoah, confirm his Luxembourgish citizenship one of his greatest wishes for the end of his life
-Each year we produce an interactive study on the immigration history of the Luxembourgish ancestors providing for their descendants’ citizenship as well as these applicant’s lives and career paths: the American-Luxembourgers study
-In 2020, I organized an international community video campaign across the US and Brazil for indviduals to explain why they are becoming Luxembourgers and why their Luxembourgish citizenship matters to them. Over 56 different people recorded videos for the campaign.
The LuxCitizenship Story
In May 2020, I organized a webinar to mark the launch of our community video campaign. The webinar was attended by 110 people and 89% stayed for over 90 minutes for our conversation simultaneously translated in Portuguese. During the webinar, I broke down the European covid situation, the Covid regulations in Luxembourg and the jurisprudence of the Luxembourgish nationality law. In this section of the webinar, I introduce our business and my story as a dual citizen.
What Makes Luxembourg So Special
In this video, I personally crated with the assistance of a professional voice actress, we break down some of the amazing things that Luxembourg has to offer especially for future dual citizens.
What Makes Luxembourg So Great
In this video I designed and completed myself with the help of a professional voice actress, we review what makes Luxembourg such a special place and what are the unique characteristics it has to offer for future dual citizens.
RTL Report on American-Luxembourgers
In August 2017, RTL recorded a report in New York City on the huge increase in American citizens obtaining dual citizenship through ancestry. I was selected by the Consulate-General of Luxembourg to be a focus of the report, I got to take the TV crew around to my work and in the kitchen as I made Bouneschlupp while recounting my great-grandmother’s story. When this report was broadcast on RTL, my long lost relatives in Luxembourg saw it leading to a story that completely changed my life.
RTL Report on American-Luxembourgers
In August 2017, RTL recorded a report in New York City on the huge increase in American citizens obtaining dual citizenship through ancestry. I was selected by the Consulate-General of Luxembourg to be a focus of the report, I got to take the TV crew around to my work and in the kitchen as I made Bouneschlupp while recounting my great-grandmother’s story. When this report was broadcast on RTL, my long lost relatives in Luxembourg saw it leading to a story that completely changed my life.
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Project - We Want to Stay What We Are Campaign
Mir Wëlle Bleiwe Wat Mir Sinn
A Community Video Campaign from the American-Luxembourger Community
Campaign: We Want to Stay What We Are
Creative Direction: Daniel ATZ
Producer: Daniel ATZ
Video Editing, Production: Lauren LOWELL
Project: Campaign of 4 compilation videos based on 51 crowdsourced videos
Because of the Covid-19 Pandemic, thousands of people in the USA and Brazil risked to permanently lose out on the opportunity to reclaim Luxembourgish nationality.
Under Luxembourg’s nationality law, applicants to recover Luxembourgish nationality through ancestral origins had until December 31, 2020. Realizing that due to the pandemic global travel would not be possible in 2020, I decided that I needed to do something. Obtaining Luxembourgish nationality through my own origins was one of the most important things I did in my life. I wanted to make sure that the hundreds of my clients and thousands of other people entitled to nationality did not lose out on this opportunity.
Because of the Covid-19 Pandemic, thousands of people in the USA and Brazil risked to permanently lose out on the opportunity to reclaim Luxembourgish nationality.
Under Luxembourg’s nationality law, applicants to recover Luxembourgish nationality through ancestral origins had until December 31, 2020. Realizing that due to the pandemic global travel would not be possible in 2020, I decided that I needed to do something. Obtaining Luxembourgish nationality through my own origins was one of the most important things I did in my life. I wanted to make sure that the hundreds of my clients and thousands of other people entitled to nationality did not lose out on this opportunity.
Working through my business LuxCitizenship, I announced a webinar to discuss the Covid-19 impact on dual citizenship applications. Realizing that thousands of Brazilians were affected by this matter and speaking Portuguese, I also reached out to the Brazilian-Luxemoburgish community.
In the end, 111 people joined for a webinar that was planned for 1 hour but lasted 93 minutes because I had to speak slowly for the Brazilian simultaneous interpreter. 89% of guests stayed for the entire 93 minutes. In the webinar, I made a direct appeal to applicants to record an up to three minute video of themselves and what their future citizenship, Luxembourgish heritage and future opportunities in Luxembourg meant to them.
We registered over 3,000 unique hits to the campaign page within 48 hours. In the end over the course of 10 days, we collected videos from 51 people across the US and Brazil. This amounted to 118 minutes of content of different formats and messages.
Working through my business LuxCitizenship, I announced a webinar to discuss the Covid-19 impact on dual citizenship applications. Realizing that thousands of Brazilians were affected by this matter and speaking Portuguese, I also reached out to the Brazilian-Luxemoburgish community.
In the end, 111 people joined for a webinar that was planned for 1 hour but lasted 93 minutes because I had to speak slowly for the Brazilian simultaneous interpreter. 89% of guests stayed for the entire 93 minutes. In the webinar, I made a direct appeal to applicants to record an up to three minute video of themselves and what their future citizenship, Luxembourgish heritage and future opportunities in Luxembourg meant to them.
We registered over 3,000 unique hits to the campaign page within 48 hours. In the end over the course of 10 days, we collected videos from 51 people across the US and Brazil. This amounted to 118 minutes of content of different formats and messages.
We spent another week of nonstop work sorting through the videos to create a unified message to share with the Deputies of Luxembourg’s Chamber of Deputies about why all these individuals care about Luxembourg and why they hoped the nationality deadline would be changed.
The Campaign was featured on RTL’s De Journal in an interview along with The Honorable Minister of Justice and Minister of Culture Sam Tanson (see right).
Outcome: On June 18th, the Chamber of Deputies voted to prolong the deadline for individuals to travel to Luxembourg until December 31, 2021. Not only did these videos contribute an important message of solidarity from the new Luxembourgish community in the Americas at a difficult time, it also caused many of these future citizens to discover the Luxembourgish language and current events in Luxembourg for the first time.
We spent another week of nonstop work sorting through the videos to create a unified message to share with the Deputies of Luxembourg’s Chamber of Deputies about why all these individuals care about Luxembourg and why they hoped the nationality deadline would be changed.
The Campaign was featured on RTL’s De Journal in an interview along with The Honorable Minister of Justice and Minister of Culture Sam Tanson (see right).
Outcome: On June 18th, the Chamber of Deputies voted to prolong the deadline for individuals to travel to Luxembourg until December 31, 2021. Not only did these videos contribute an important message of solidarity from the new Luxembourgish community in the Americas at a difficult time, it also caused many of these future citizens to discover the Luxembourgish language and current events in Luxembourg for the first time.
