Maryland Commerce awards export grants to more than 100 businesses, including two locally

Over the past year, the Maryland Department of Commerce has awarded more than 100 small and midsize Maryland companies with ExportMD grants to help promote their products and services in the global marketplace.

In Washington County, Cornerstone Genomics and Land Cruiser Heaven have been awarded grants.

The grants — awarded from July 2023 through July 2024 — help businesses finance the costs of marketing internationally including trade show fees and travel expenses.

Established in 1999, the ExportMD program provides matching grants up to $5,000 from Commerce’s Office of International Investment and Trade.

ExportMD is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, which has awarded multiple State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) grants to Maryland Commerce to help fund the program.

“The ExportMD grant program provides an excellent opportunity for businesses to succeed in our state and around the world — and ultimately bring more growth to Maryland’s economy,” said Maryland Commerce Secretary Kevin Anderson. “With help from the U.S. SBA, we’re proud to have supported more than 100 local businesses over the year with their global expansion efforts.”

From Washington to Wicomico counties, Maryland businesses utilized the state program in a variety of ways. Located in Baltimore City, Alertus Technologies used its ExportMD grant for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to improve the quality and quantity of traffic to its website. Gross Mechanical Laboratories from Queen Anne’s County organized an individual sales trip to the Netherlands. And St. Mary’s County-based company ABSI Aerospace & Defense attended the Singapore Air Show as part of the delegation led by the Maryland Department of Commerce.

Applications for the ExportMD program are accepted on a monthly basis. Eligibility requirements can be found on the Commerce website, https://commerce.maryland.gov/fund/programs-for-businesses/exportmd-program.

Western Maryland community colleges receive Edwards Fund Grant for cyber ranges.