On Oct. 22, Mayor Lester Friedman, Vice Mayor Sharona Nazarian, Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Todd Johnson, Chamber of Commerce Director of Economic Development, Brittany Ganson, City Manager Nancy Hunt-Coffey and Conference and Visitors Bureau CEO Julie Wagner traveled to New York City to build and grow connections with local businesses. The annual trip, known as the “New York Business Attraction and Retention Mission,” is an opportunity to meet with Beverly Hills businesses that are headquartered on the East Coast and to provide guidance for new businesses that are looking to expand. This was Friedman’s third time making the trip, and his first time representing the city as mayor.
Over the course of three days, the mayor and vice mayor each attended four separate meetings— two in the morning and two in the afternoon— 24 meetings throughout the week. They also held a few special meetings with the Paley Center for Media, which, after vacating its Beverly Hills-based museum, announced last year that it is going to house its new West Coast collection in the Beverly Hills Library. The mayor and vice mayor both met with representatives to discuss their progress on the project.
During the trip, they also coordinated with the New York Convention and Visitors Bureau to talk with some of the top travel agents in New York who send guests to the West Coast.
As Friedman explained, Beverly Hills is an ancillary for luxury fashion houses such as Givenchy, Dior, Ralph Lauren and David Yurman. He and Nazarian attended multiple meetings with them throughout the week. “What we try and do is find out what they feel the city could do to help them and we want to find out what it is that they have found to be productive about being in Beverly Hills,” Friedman told the Courier.
After meeting with several prospective businesses, the mayor confirmed that at least one will be joining him back home. This business has already signed a lease in Beverly Hills for its new West Coast headquarters and hopes to grow its concierge model of medical insurance that has already been successful in New York. “I think what they’re looking for is to fill a void that they believe exists in terms of people who are seeking medical attention,” said Friedman. “And they feel that their New York clientele has some similar attributes to those in Beverly Hills.”
The delegation also met with a French luxury retailer for men’s fashion who showed an interest in opening a Beverly Hills location. This retailer recently relocated within New York but has plans to expand in the near future.
Although his agenda was packed full of meetings, Friedman did make time to see a Broadway show before he left. “If you’re in New York and you miss a show, you haven’t done New York yet,” he said.
