In South Korea violins have a sound of CremonaEU trade deals sees Italian luthiers triumph in South Korea

• The 2011 EU-South Korea trade deal cut tariffs and other barriers to trade.

• South Korea is now the fourth largest market in the world for Italian violins. Export there increased by 65% between 2011 and 2015.

Sound of Cremona is a small artisan business from Cremona, home of the famous Italian luthier, Antonio Stradivari. Edgar Russ, who founded the company in 1990, is an Austrian master luthier who moved to Cremona to study this art in its hometown. Since the opening of his first workshop, the company has combined tradition and innovation thanks to a desire to meet the varying needs of the market. Alongside the finest handmade instruments personally made by Master Russ, Sound of Cremona also offers a choice to satisfy a whole range of different tastes, skill-levels and price ranges. The company now has a team of two master luthiers, Edgar Russ and his South Korean partner Minjeong Kang, plus five additional employees.

Upon the ratification of the 2011 EU-South Korea trade deal Sound of Cremona gained approved exporter status in South Korea. In addition to improving the business environment the agreement lifted tariff duties and other barriers to trade, enabling Sound of Cremona to offer its violins at more competitive prices. South Korea is now the fourth largest market in the world for Italian violins and exports to the country grew by 65% between 2010 and 2015. In fact, in the first five months of 2016, Sound of Cremona has made more sales than throughout all of 2011. Such strong demand in South Korea has enabled the company to offset the effects of declining markets such as Japan where the lack of an EU trade deal at present makes doing business more difficult.

Did you know? • 119 000 SMEs represent 90% of Italian companies

that export outside the EU.

South Korea is the fourth largest market in the world for Italian violins. Export there increased by 65% between 2011 and 2015.

“Knowing our sector very well, we are sure that without the EU trade agreement we would have lost the South Korean market completely. In past years, Japan has been the primary importer of our products but, due to high export costs, we have been unable to offer such competitive prices and the market there is decreasing. At the same time we’ve fortunately seen a strong increase in demand from South Korea since the EU trade agreement entered into force in 2011.

The EU-South Korea Trade Agreement The trade agreement between the EU and South Korea came into force in July 2011. It is the first such EU agreement with an Asian country. The treaty removes a number of customs duties between the two countries – for instance on vehicles, pharmaceuticals, medical and electronic devices. Find out more about the EU’s trade relations with South Korea: http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/countries/south-korea/ Check out more examples illustrating the benefits of free trade on: http://ec.europa.eu/trade/exporter-stories

Sound of Cremona gained approved exporter status in South Korea, leading to an increase in demand.

Did you know? • Exports from the EU support more than

2 700 000 jobs in Italy. • Exports from the EU generate an annual

revenue of €149 billion.

Master Edgar Russ, Founder and Owner, Sound of Cremona