Leslie M. Schweitzer
Senior Trade Advisor, Trade Roots, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Trade and the Economy
As Senior Trade Advisor for the National Chamber Foundation of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Leslie M. Schweitzer is developing and directing the TradeRoots Initiative, a national grassroots international trade education program designed to raise the public awareness of international trade. Schweitzer has over thirty years of experience in the international trade arena. She pioneered U.S./China business beginning in 1977 and is proficient in foreign negotiation, marketing, product development, bartering, counterpurchase and manufacturing, as well as experienced in analyzing growth potential of foreign companies.
Before joining the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Schweitzer’s background includes founding and managing a full service offshore apparel manufacturing and marketing company in 1987 geared to acquiring advantageous foreign manufacturing sources for U.S. companies. The company specialized in utilizing and developing consumer product
industries in third world and developing countries. Schweitzer also owned and managed factories in the Caribbean that produced labor-intensive apparel for U.S. and foreign retail stores, manufacturers and catalog companies.
In 1977 Schweitzer co-founded Noble Trading Company, which assisted U.S.-based companies with product sales to China, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Poland, Rumania, South America and the Caribbean. Clients included Pepsi World Trade and Motors Trading Company of General Motors. Schweitzer also developed manufacturing facilities in these countries to produce consumer products for export. She has been involved in international business ventures in the Soviet Union and Finland. In addition to these activities, she is a frequent speaker on entrepreneurship in international trade and has been a member of various boards, including the American Management Association, CARESBAC, Operation Enterprise and the Department of Commerce’s Trade Advisory Board. Currently Schweitzer serves on the Advisory Board for International Programs at the University of Kansas.
Schweitzer attended the University of Kansas and University of Copenhagen and received her B. S. in International Relations from George Washington University. She is the mother of two sons.