The National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones 2025 Annual Conference was held in Kansas City on September 14-17 at the Westin Crown Center. This year’s event was sold out, achieving record attendance. 

KC-AREA PANEL: Chris Gutierrez, President of the Greater Kansas City Foreign Trade Zone (GKCFTZ) & KC SmartPort, led a panel discussion with local Kansas City Operators - Kawasaki, Assa Abloy & MRI Global. The panel discussion and the conference were featured in this KC Business Journal article.

KC-STYLE RECEPTION: Attendees celebrated KC-style at Union Station Grand Hall with a reception featuring live jazz from KC native and jazz legend Lonnie McFadden along with KC-themed food and drinks on Tuesday, September 16. The reception was hosted by GKCFTZ, Miller & Co, Scarbrough Global and Union Station.

The conference provided only a preview of all that Kansas City has to offer. 

KANSAS CITY’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES:

America’s Crossroads: KC sits at the heart of North America, where world-class transportation infrastructure meets unmatched connectivity. From this central location, companies can quickly deliver and reliably scale across the continent.

Workforce Ready: Advanced manufacturing and high-growth sectors thrive in KC, fueled by a deep talent pool ready to drive success - ensuring a seamless market entry. 

FTZ in the Heartland: The Greater Kansas City Foreign Trade Zone (Zones 15 & 17) provides our region and the companies located here a superior advantage. Industry leaders such as Bayer Crop Science, Kawasaki, Garmin, Panasonic Energy, Assa Abloy and others have realized the benefits of having an FTZ in the center of the country.

The Greater Kansas City Foreign Trade Zone (GKCFTZ) is the regional grantee of the national FTZ program. GKCFTZ sponsors both Foreign-Trade Zone No. 15 with 23 counties in western Missouri and Zone No. 17 with 9 counties in eastern Kansas.