Choose New Jersey, Inc. to Tout New Jersey's Life Sciences Hub At World's Largest Biotechnology Event

PRINCETON, N.J., June 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Showcasing the Garden State's key business advantages and touting the state's flourishing life sciences industry, Choose New Jersey, Inc., along with Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno, the Business Action Center (BAC), BioNJ, the HealthCare Institute of New Jersey (HINJ) and other partners will be on site in Boston for the BIO International Convention on June 18-21.

The participation of New Jersey's delegation at the conference is preceded by this week's announcement that Governor Chris Christie has been named by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) as 2012 Governor of the Year in recognition of his leadership and commitment to advancing biotechnology and promoting public health.

"New Jersey offers unparalleled opportunities for pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device businesses. Raising awareness of these assets – like our strategic location and access to one of the best-educated and highly-skilled workforces in the country – is instrumental in our efforts to attract and retain companies in the state," said Lt. Governor Guadagno. "The considerable concentration of life science businesses in New Jersey and recent investments from major corporations are a testament to what the region has to offer, and we are eager to share our state's competitive advantages with this international audience."

Choose New Jersey, a nonprofit corporation created to promote New Jersey as a place in which to invest and do business, and BioNJ are organizing the state's largest presence at this show in recent history. The delegation will meet with targeted company prospects and media at the conference, which is the largest biotechnology event in the world and last year drew more than 15,000 industry leaders from 48 states and 65 countries.

"New Jersey is home to 17 out of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies, with the highest concentration of scientists and engineers per capita in the nation," said Tracye McDaniel, president and CEO of Choose New Jersey. "We're serious about sharing the state's assets with this target group of professionals in order to attract new business and jobs."

Choose New Jersey is collaborating with the NJ Business Action Center, New Jersey universities and the state's leading life sciences organizations, BioNJ and HINJ, on the conference's New Jersey pavilion to showcase the state as a global life sciences hub. Participating universities include New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Princeton University, Rutgers University, and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). Additional organizations representing NJ will be InnovationNJ and New Jersey Life Sciences Vendors Alliance.

Additionally, Lt. Governor Guadagno and Choose New Jersey will host prospect companies for a special event on June 19. Sponsored by HINJ, the evening will provide networking opportunities for some of the world's top life science executives and will feature music by the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra Chamber Players.

The first major launch of the state's new branding campaign, guided by a fresh slogan, "Highly educated, perfectly located," will also be unveiled at BIO through a newly designed pavilion and collateral material. Key messages about New Jersey's robust life sciences sector and resources available to companies will be shared with business leaders through highly targeted recruitment meetings and with trade media though face-to-face interviews.

About Choose New Jersey, Inc.
Choose New Jersey, Inc., a member of the Partnership for Action – including the NJ Business Action Center and the NJ Economic Development Authority – is responsible for executing New Jersey's economic development strategy. Choose New Jersey, Inc. is an independently funded and operated 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation created to promote New Jersey as a place to invest and do business. For more information, visit www.choosenj.com.

Contact: Melissa Hensley, 609-297-2192
[email protected]

SOURCE Choose New Jersey, Inc.