Australian Chamber Of Commerce Expands Its Network

Source: Christa Longkumer

On 30 March, the Australian Chamber of Commerce held its debut event, the Savannakhet Sundowner in Savannakhet. Austcham has recently expanded its network to Savannakhet and will be the first foreign Chamber of Commerce in the province. Graham Gatenby, CEO of Asian Pipe Services along with Colin von Rechenberg of CS Automation, were key players in persuading Austcham to open a new chapter in Savannakhet.

This first meeting was proudly sponsored by Graham & Asian Pipe Services, which was formed in 2013. APS is a 100% Lao registered company that specializes in ECPM (engineering, construction, procurement and management) projects and SMP (structural, mechanical and piping) in SE Asia.

The President of Austcham, Tammy Meddard, CEO of ANZ Bank, travelled from Vientiane to welcome the folks of Savannakhet to the chapter. She was accompanied by a number of members who live in Vientiane and Bangkok.

The enjoyable and informative evening was attended by about 45 local business people and was held at Pilgrim’s Kitchen & Inn, a restaurant that opened 6 months ago. Pilgrim’s is owned by an Indian, Daniel Longkumer, and his American wife, Christa. Pilgrim’s Kitchen, which serves Indian, American, Mexican & Mediterranean food, has a lovely atmosphere with Wifi and air conditioning for dining.

Austcham hopes that through its quarterly Sundowner events it will attract a number of the attendees to take out memberships and ensure that this initiative is both vibrant and sustainable in the years to come.