Hundreds of top-caliber Asian American suppliers connected with serious buyers, industry leaders and visionaries at CelebrAsian Procurement Conference – the country’s largest business-to-business event convened by Pan Asian Americans to connect with large, medium and small enterprises – was held June 1-3, 2016 at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta in Atlanta.

CelebrAsian is the annual national flagship event of the U.S. Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation (USPAACC).

UPS Chairman and CEO David Abney served as the honorary conference chair. UPS Chief Information Officer  Juan Perez was the Keynote Speaker. 

The Coca-Cola Company, Nissan, SunTrust Bank and UPS were the corporate host co-chairs. Ampcus and Softpath System were the Asian American business co-chairs. PepsiCo and Wells Fargo were the Legacy co-chairs.

“We are proud to have brought CelebrAsian to Atlanta – home to a dynamic and fast-growing Pan Asian American business community and major hub forsome of the best-known global brands and Fortune powerhouses,” said Susan Au Allen, USPAACC national president and CEO. 

“We could not have presented a conference of this magnitude, breadth, and substance without the strong support of our Southeast Chapter and its board members, our brain trusts, corporate and Asian American sponsors, and all those who continue to believe and support USPAACC’s mission of creating economic parity, inclusion, and minority business growth in the mainstream,” Allen said.

Highlights included the recognition of the enormous achievements of the Fast 100 Asian American Businesses, whose collective revenue of $3 billion, with companies reaching an average growth rate of up to 44 percent.

In addition, the Excellence Award was presented to the leaders of the largest national supplier diversity organizations – Nationall Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC), U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC), U.S. Black Chambers (USBC), and Nationall Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) – to honor their courage and resolve as they enter a new level of growth in diversity and inclusion for their respective constituency.

The Corporation of the Decade Award was presented to Wells Fargo for their continued support of USPAACC’s mission and programs, as well as for their steadfast commitment in ensuring the robust growth and success of the Asian American business community.

The conference theme, “Today’s vision, tomorrow’s reality: cheers to the next 30 years!” reflected the power of transformative ideas that entrepreneurs envision and the promise of a new and boundless horizon as they work hard to realize their dreams.

The conference program – designed to inform, educate, create procurement opportunities and propel job growth – included the Chief Procurement Officers Forum, Chief Technology Officers/Chief Information Officers Forum, Ideas Marketplace: What’s Your Pitch? competition, Doing Business in the Healthcare Industry, Doing Business with Financial Services Companies, Grow Your Business with Google, Asian American Chambers Summit, Wells Fargo Under 40 Millionaire Entrepreneurs Luncheon, Supplier Diversity Managers’ Caucus, Business Leaders and Scholarship Awards Luncheon, Supplier Trade Fair, and USPAACC’s signature pre-scheduled one-on-one business matchmaking meetings.

In three days, CelebrAsian brought together over 800 participants, who came in full force from all over the country, including 94 corporations and 22 government agencies. Over 500 pre-scheduled one-on-one business matchmaking meetings were held between buyers and suppliers, across various industries, and with over 50 commodities to be purchased in the next 12-18 months.

To learn more, visit uspaacc.com or celebrasianconference.com

ABOUT USPAACC: Founded in 1984 as a national non-profit non-partisan organization, USPAACC has been the single unified voice advocating equal opportunities for Pan Asian Americans in the United States. We promote and propel economic growth by opening doors to business, educational and professional opportunities for Pan Asian Americans and their business partners in major corporations, government at federal, state, and local levels, and small/minority communities. USPAACC serves as the gateway to Pan Asian American suppliers, information about Pan Asian Americans and the dynamic Asia-Pacific and Indian Subcontinent markets.