WTDC Newsletter – October 1, 2020 – President’s Corner – #CroquetaDay and #LiveLikeBella -CDC extends Cruise Ship No Sail Order through October 31st -WTDC President and CEO Sean Gazitua featured in Foreign Trade Zone article -WTDC Health and Wellness program President’s Corner Today I’m enjoying Croqueta Day with a ham croqueta – and dash of lime – from my favorite Cuban restaurant Sergio’s. My cousin Carlos Gazitua is CEO of Sergio’s Restaurants and it brings me pride to see people across the country celebrating with croquetas today. If you don’t have a Sergio’s ventanita near you, you can now order online nationwide! A couple weeks ago I had lunch at Sergio’s with Live Like Bella Chairman of the Board Raymond Rodriguez. Mr. Rodriguez shared that each day 43 families receive the devastating news that their child has cancer. Live Like Bella is now using the number 43 in their childhood cancer awareness campaigns. My cousin Carlos passed by our table to say hello and a few minutes later an amazing cross-promotion was hatched to sell 43 limited edition Sergio’s wagyu burgers topped with croquetas for $43 dollars on October 1st. Reservations for the promotion quickly sold out and $2020 in proceeds went to Live Like Bella! Last weekend WTDC participated as a silver sponsor in Live Like Bella’s Get Active for Kids with Cancer event. Our WTDC team ‘got active’ at the workplace and we had a little fun making a video for the Live Like Bella event, see the last article in today’s newsletter for more. CDC extends Cruise Ship No Sail Order through October 31 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced yesterday that the No Sail Order expiring on September 30th would be extended through October 31st. From the CDC Media Statement: “The continued spread of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, risk of resurgence in countries that have suppressed transmission, ongoing concerns related to restarting of cruising internationally, and need for additional time to assess industry measures to control potential SARS-CoV-2 transmission on board cruise ships with passengers without burdening public health, support continuation of the No Sail Order at this time.” CDC: Cruise Ship No Sail Order Extended Through October 31, 2020 Sean Gazitua featured in article on Foreign Trade Zones Supply Chain Dive reached out to WTDC President & CEO Sean Gazitua for his comments on renewed interest in Foreign Trade Zones throughout the U.S.: Interest in these locations has grown as a result of the trade war, which increased tariffs by as much as 25% on some items imported from China. Shippers have also become more interested in FTZs during the pandemic as a way to cut costs, said Sean P. Gazitúa, the president and CEO of Miami-based WTDC, a logistics company, FTZ operator and consultant. “It’s been a busy year,” Gazitúa said. “A lot of people have been trying to cut costs or hold on to their cash as long as possible.” Click the article below for additional comments from Mr. Gazitua on how WTDC is assisting companies as a FTZ Consultant to create their own Foreign Trade Zones and how companies are using FTZs to defer duties as a cash savings strategy during these uncertain times. Supply Chain Dive: FedEx opens Foreign Trade Zone in El Paso, Texas, as trade war and pandemic increase shipper interest WTDC Health & Wellness In the first article of today’s newsletter, we mentioned a video taken at WTDC for the Live Like Bella Get Active for Kids event, linked in the photo above. WTDC recently upgraded the workout equipment available to its employees and tenants in the WTDC fitness center. Since its creation we’ve been able to offer daily yoga and stretching sessions, healthy lunch options to our staff, health insurance options for all full time employees, massages from a licensed masseuse, flu shots, annual participation in the Live Like Bella 5k, a quiet room for meditation, COVID-19 testing and deep cleanings of the facility to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Programming has included Zumba, Tai Chi, Ballet, and cross training. WTDC’s Health and Wellness program was born out of an idea to make our workplace a welcoming and healthy environment for our tenants and employees. We continue to learn from the best practices of like-minded companies and our findings mirror those discussed by our payroll and HR service company ADP in the article below: a healthier workforce is a more productive and engaged one. ADP: Employee Health and Wellness: What the Healthiest Employers Do Differently |