The Association of US Representatives Abroad (AURA) is an informal association of US state and county representatives in the UK. It was established by the US Commercial Service in London seven years ago. I have recently taken over as president from Mick Ryan, who successfully built up the organisation over the previous five years.

In addition to the nearly 50 state, US city and county members, AURA has 90 commercial members, giving a membership of over 140. The different state, city and county offices provide a range of services for companies wishing to trade or invest in a particular region. Many will help with inward and outward trade missions. Some offices will also include tourism in their remit.

AURA also maintains strong links with the Council of American States in Europe (CASE), based in Germany, that represents those states that have a non-UK-based European Office. This gives AURA members a wider access.

In addition to working closely with the US Embassy in London, we have excellent relationships with UK Trade & Investment and many of the UK Regional Development Authorities, which we meet regularly in order to keep our members abreast of new initiatives, support and new contacts.

The members of AURA meet every three months for a speaker event followed by networking. Members swap notes on up-and-coming events and relevant trade missions.

Although our members are potential competitors (in truth, conflict seldom occurs) we are all committed to helping US-UK trade and investment and we believe that exchanging ideas and contacts is to the benefit of all. The US Embassy Commercial Service also uses our member notices to distribute relevant information from the US government.

If you are interested in expanding into the UK, your first port of call should be to see if your city, state or county has offices in the UK or Europe. Details of most offices can be found in this publication.

For more information contact:
Tim Church or Tracey Smith
ED Alliance
Grosvenor Gardens House, Suite 70
35-37 Grosvenor Gardens
London SW1W 0BS
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7630 5033
Email: timchurch@edalliance.co.uk