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SWEDISH AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE | GEORGIA

  • 28 Sep 2018 11:53 AM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    Thank you to everyone who attended our Open House yesterday! We hope that you enjoyed the fika and had a good time networking, we sure did!

  • 13 Sep 2018 9:57 AM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)


    Believe it or not, but it is time to start preparing for SACC-Georgia's 33rd Annual Lucia Gala! This extraordinary event is taking place December 15th 2018 at Druid Hills Golf Club. Come celebrate this wonderful tradition with us and enjoy delicacies from our Swedish Christmas Smorgardsbord, various Scandinavian beverages, a traditional Lucia procession performance, schnapps singing, dancing to a live band, silent auction, and much more.

    To register/purchase tickets for the event, click here!


    For inspiration and perhaps build up your excitement even more, a video from last year’s event can be found here and photos here.


    We sincerely hope that you will join us on December 15th for an evening to remember in traditional Swedish spirit!
  • 12 Sep 2018 2:07 PM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    SWEA Atlanta Swedish Christmas Market 2018

    The date is set for SWEA Atlanta's traditional Swedish Christmas Market, taking place on Sunday December 2nd between 11 AM - 3.30 PM at Dorothy Benson Center in Sandy Springs. This annual market showcases the culture and holiday traditions of Sweden and draws many Swedish, American as well as international families from around the state.

    At the market you will find unique Swedish crafts and gifts, sweets and home-baked goods and enjoy Swedish food and drinks - and of course much, much more!

    The Market also offers children’s activities hosted by the Swedish School of Atlanta, and last but not least, a traditional Lucia procession.

    The admission for this event is $2 for Adults and free for those under the age of 18. Also, free for any visitor wearing a Scandinavian National Costume (“folkdräkt”).

    Read more about the event HERE, we look forward seeing you there!

  • 10 Sep 2018 3:41 PM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    This week we had the chance to chat with Jaime Gonzalez Pereira, Vice Chairman of SACC-GA and Business Controller at Elekta, a Swedish company that provides radiation therapy, radio surgery, related equipment and clinical management for the treatment of cancer and brain disorders. Elekta has one of their many global offices in Atlanta, and is also a corporate member of SACC-GA. We talked to Jaime about his relation to Sweden and SACC, as well as Elekta as a company.

    Tell us a little bit about yourself and your relation to Sweden as well as SACC-GA? I was born in Chile and at a quite young age, my parents decided to move to Sweden due to the situation in Chile. The reason for the decision of Sweden was that my parents had some relatives living in Stockholm. Sweden was also known, which I believe they still are, to be of help and accept people from countries where there might some sort of instability. I finished my studies at University of Stockholm, where I then began working for Elekta at the end of calendar year 2007. Got a promotion where I moved to the UK, then to Brazil and then to the US, where I’ve been for almost 4 years. So my career has brought me to several different countries where I always try to have some sort of connection to Sweden. Arriving in Atlanta, SACC-GA was that connection with Sweden.

    What is your favorite event with SACC-GA and why? Lucia for sure. You'll see a majority of members from SACC, who also invite family and friends. It is also one of my favorite events because it's a cultural celebration that brings back good memories from Sweden.

    Tell us about Elekta and why they are a part of SACC-GA? Elekta is proud to be the leading innovator of equipment and software used to improve, prolong and save the lives of people with cancer and brain disorders. More than 6,000 hospitals worldwide rely on Elekta's technology. Elekta has been a part of SACC-GA for many years. Elekta's former CEO (Tomas Puusepp) was based in the US for many years and saw the need and benefit of being part of the Chamber, to gain knowledge and experience from other Swedish companies, but also to give input on what Elekta deals with, both benefits and struggles. I strongly believe that Elekta benefits from bringing “Swedishness” into the office and to its employees by being part of SACC-GA. We strive to have employees being a part of events, which might be difficult being based in Atlanta, U.S.

    How does operating a business in the U.S differ from Sweden? Especially for a company like Elekta? First of all, volumes are a big difference. We’re comparing Sweden that have 10 million people in population vs. the US who have 325 million. But not only due to population difference, US is the world’s largest market for radiation therapy and it has the largest installed base of linear accelerators. If you look at the work force Elekta has globally, out of 3,700 employees, 900 of them are based in the US. This makes the US the biggest employer within Elekta, even bigger than UK, where Elekta has its major production plant. Also, based on producing products to hospitals in Sweden (but also in many other countries in Europe and other continents) the purchases are done by the state, due to hospitals being part of the public sectors. In the US it’s predominantly private healthcare providers.

    In what ways is the Swedish mentality and culture present at Elekta here in the US? “Consensus” is noticeable in the day-to-day work (not sure if it’s always good) and June-July months are very calm over here in the US whereas no one answers if you give a call to Sweden. Jokes aside, Elekta does try to give certain benefits to its employees, such as an extended maternity leave. We do have one core message which is “we do what we say”, which I feel is well connected to the Swedish mentality. Something I do like with Elekta culture, and also noticed among chamber company members, is that it’s quite easy and almost encouraged to move from one country to another. It’s well accepted to have international colleagues because we understand it gives a good benefit, not only for the one who moved abroad, but also for local employees to gain experience from how other cultures works, and gain ideas from. Personally it has brought me fantastic challenges and activities during my 10 years with Elekta!

  • 7 Sep 2018 8:26 AM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    Welcome new Business Development Coordinator Anna Malmsten and Marketing & Event Coordinator Josefin!

    After a long, warm summer it is safe to say that we are more than ready to kick-start this fall with a lot of new events and activities planned. For SACC-GA this means that new trainees are joining the team, and we are happy to welcome Anna Malmsten for the Business Development position and Josefin Edenborg as Marketing & Event position. Read on to get to know more about Anna and Josefin and their thoughts of their upcoming months here in Atlanta!


    Anna Malmsten - Business Development Coordinator

    What do you look forward the most?
    I look forward to experiencing the culture here in the states, both in terms of business culture and outside work and to see how it differs from the Swedish culture. I also look forward to meeting new people and to the networking events.

    What will you bring to your position and SACC-GA?

    I will bring a positive mindset and a sense for customer service. I have previous been working in retail and banking, both two service industries which gave me an understanding of the importance of the customers need which I think will be a good starting point in my position as Business Development Coordinator.

    What do you hope to gain from this experience?

    I hope to broaden my perspectives and gain a better cultural understanding of how the US market differ from the Swedish market. As SACC-GE is a non-profit organization, I also hope to gain a deeper understanding of the structure of a non-profit organization and how it is to work for such an organization.

    Tell us a little about yourself!

    I am originally from outside a small city called Kristianstad in southern Sweden where I grew up and lived my 23 first years. Since then I have lived 6 months in Hong Kong before I moved to Uppsala where I am studying a master’s in Business and Management at Uppsala University. Besides my studies and work I love to travel, meet new people, and to experience new cultures and I believe that there is something to learn from every new meeting. I also try to stay active and I have been competing in both Toughest and Tough Viking which are two obstacle courses in Sweden.


    Josefin Edenborg - Marketing & Event Coordinator


    What do you look forward the most?

    I have always wanted to go to the US and experience the culture and working life here, so choosing one thing is hard. However, I am especially looking forward to all the people I will have the opportunity to meet, both within a business environment but also private. I am also really excited about the events I will get the opportunity to project lead, which I hope people will enjoy and create great memories at.

    What will you bring to your position and SACC-GA?

    Through my role as president of the Exchange committee at my student association, I gained a lot of experience in terms of project event/marketing planning and problem solving which I believe I can contribute with as well as develop. I also hope that my creativity and enthusiasm within the area can be a valuable addition to the team at SACC-GA.

    What do you hope to gain from this experience?

    I hope to gain insight in the American business culture and how it differs from Sweden, as well as develop my skills within marketing. As this is a role comes with a lot of responsibility and ownership of your own work, I am also convinced that I will have to challenge myself in many ways which is a valuable experience in itself.

    Tell us a little about yourself!

    I just graduated from my BSc at Stockholm School of Economics where I spent the last three years. Before that I spent almost as long living in London, initially working as an au pair and after that within retail. I grew up in a small town called Nässjö in Småland where my family still lives and I love to visit. My best friend is my identical twin (!) Isabelle who I don’t just share looks with but also the same bad sense of humour. On my free time I enjoy spending time with friends and family, as well as travel.


  • 22 Aug 2018 3:00 PM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    Today the Honorary Swedish Consul, Mr. Tom Rosseland, welcomed Swedish expats in Georgia to the voting poll.

  • 17 Aug 2018 12:36 PM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    Ashkan Eghtesadi-Azar is originally from Gothenburg, Sweden and holds a master degree in Public Administration from the University of Gothenburg. He came to the U.S. for a six month internship at the Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce, Georgia in August last year. After he successfully completed the internship, he took on new challenges at ProcessMiner, a business member of the chamber.

    Read the article here.


  • 16 Aug 2018 8:00 PM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    The International Summer Networking was a success! Many thanks to everyone who joined us and made this evening wonderful!

    Also a big thanks to our organizing partners British American Business Council, Belgian American Chamber of the SouthFrench American Chamber of Commerce - Atlanta (FACC-Atlanta)Netherlands American Chamber of Commerce SouthEastern United States and Metro Atlanta Chamber!

    Stay up to date for the next event by the European chambers!


    The hostesses for the evening
  • 15 Aug 2018 11:55 AM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    SACC Georgia had the opportunity to tour the International Terminal for interesting insights to the history and behind-the-scenes operations of the International Terminal. Thanks to everyone who joined us and many thanks to corporate member Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport for having us!





    Find more pictures from the tour on our Facebook page here.

  • 27 Jul 2018 12:31 PM | SACC-Georgia (Administrator)

    Pricer, business member of SACC-Georgia, is the global leading provider of in-store shelf-edge digital solutions for international tier one retailers. The Swedish company has its headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden. The U.S. operations are based in Atlanta.

    Read the article here.


Sponsor Spotlight 



ABOUT SACC-GEORGIA

The primary objective of SACC-Georgia is to promote an exchange of business, trade, investment, technology and culture between Sweden and the state of Georgia. SACC-Georgia is one of 19 regional chambers across the United States, cooperating under the umbrella of SACC-USA based in Washington, D.C.

CONTACT

info@sacc-georgia.org

303 Peachtree Center Ave NE Ste 600 Atlanta, GA 30303 

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