Businesses named as World Expo sponsors

Liverpool Vision has announced that a number of companies have signed up to sponsor Liverpool at the World Expo at a corporate delegate level.

Together with the Liverpool Commercial District Partnership, the following companies sponsoring Liverpool includes:

• Law firm Hill Dickinson
• Accountants Ernst & Young
• Construction consultants Davis Langdon
• Liverpool's maritime sector umbrella organisation Mersey Maritime
• Architects Chapman Taylor
• Civil engineers Bingham Davis
• Transport planning and engineering consultancy JMP
• Economic and commercial development analysts SPV Consulting
• Building services and energy solutions firm Cofely GDF Suez
• Consultancy services Feenix e-Learning
• Engineers and consultants Sinclair Knight Merz

Liverpool Vision said the cost of the sponsorship is worth £21,500 in total.

Mike Taylor, director of investment and enterprise at Liverpool Vision, said: "It has been important for us to create a platform for businesses of all sizes to take advantage of the city's presence in Shanghai.

"We have from the outset wanted as many of the city's and the wider region's organisations to join us in Shanghai so they can properly understand and engage with the new and emerging markets so that they will not only be able to grow their businesses, but also the North West region's economy and business offer.

"Over the past few months we have seen more and more businesses showing an interest in Liverpool's presence at the World Expo and I am delighted that these businesses will join us in China and I hope more will follow."

The North West Development Agency is the main supporter of Liverpool at the World Expo with £1.25m worth of sponsorship.

Liverpool's participation in the Expo is being led by Vision in partnership with the NWDA, Liverpool City Council and the Liverpool-Shanghai Partnership.

Peel Holdings paid £100,000 to be lead sponsor of Liverpool at the Expo. Joining the developer and transport giant from the private sector are Arup and Enterprise, while North West universities consortium and Merseytravel have also supported Liverpool as main sponsors.

The World Expo runs between 1 May and 31 October in Shanghai and is regarded as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to consolidate existing and forge new relationships in the world's emerging markets. Vision said it is predicted to deliver up to £50m in economic benefits to Liverpool and the North West over the next decade.