Virginia Beach’s Economic Development Website Recognized at the Foreign Direct Investment 2014 Awards

July 8, 2014

The Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development’s website was recognized in the FDI Association’s second annual Foreign Direct Investment Awards at the World Forum for Foreign Direct Investment 2014, held at the Union League in Philadelphia. This year’s awards recognize excellence in three categories of foreign direct investment activity: FDI Destination of the Future for Energy-Intensive Industries, FDI Destination of the Future for Water-Intensive Industries and FDI Website of the Year.

The site, www.yesvirginiabeach.com, underwent a significant overhaul in design, infrastructure and content in 2013. The new design is data driven, with special emphasis on providing information most frequently requested by global clients. The site was also engineered and programmed to be responsive across a variety of mobile platforms. The fresh design incorporates more user-friendly infographics and icons, which help mostly foreign-language visitors to more easily access and understand content describing the benefits and ease of locating a business in Virginia Beach.

Nominations from around the world were accepted and evaluated by a panel of distinguished global site consultants. The FDI Award winners for 2014 are as follows:

FDI Website of the Year

London & Partners
InvestHK (Hong Kong) and Invest Czech Republic
Invest KL (Malaysia) and City of Virginia Beach, Va.

FDI Destination of the Future for Energy-Intensive Industries

Pennsylvania
Ontario
City of Sheffield (UK) and City of Ostersund (Sweden)

FDI Destination of the Future for Water-Intensive Industries

Portugal
Baton Rouge
Chicago

“We are very pleased to be selected among the best in the world for the FDI Awards,” said Warren D. Harris, director of Economic Development. “Virginia Beach is increasingly recognized as a global player, and we continually refine and articulate our strengths and assets to companies around the world looking for a strategic business location. We know that most of the research is done online so this award confirms we are presenting ourselves in a very positive way.”

The mission of the Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development is to attract and retain national and international businesses to stimulate capital investment and create jobs. Virginia Beach is the most populous city in Virginia with a population of 440,000, and it is the 37th largest in the United States. It is recognized as one of the Best Run Cities in America by 24/7 Wall St. The Department of Economic Development received re-accreditation through the International Economic Development Council in 2012 and is one of only 29 economic development organizations in the world to have this recognition. Virginia Beach has been recognized as the Top 7 Big City Leading the U.S. Manufacturing Revival by Forbes. It is listed among the Top Five Overall Mid-sized American Cities of the Future, Top 10 for Economic Potential and Top Five for Infrastructure by fDi Magazine. CNNMoney.com ranked Virginia Beach as the Easiest Place to Start a Business and the 2nd Most Business-Friendly City in the country. For more information, visit www.yesvirginiabeach.com.

# # #