Commerce International Québec Montérégie (CIQMO) was created in 1999 to provide front-line export services to companies in Monteregie wishing to expand their activities in international markets.
Serving exporters and emerging exporters, CIQMO invests on clear objectives: to stimulate, generate, promote and assist international trade through targeted activities, as well as to support, train and advise companies in their efforts.
CIQMO is the entry point for companies from Monteregie wishing to do business internationally.
In 1999, Suroît Club Export opened its doors with the financial support from Economic Development Canada and the three CLDs from Beauharnois-Salaberry, Haut-Saint-Laurent and Vaudreuil-Soulanges regions. This new organization had a primary objective, to assist entrepreneurs from these three regions in their effort of exporting to external markets.
2005 was a year of transition and as part of the renewal of their export policy, DEC and MDEIE Montérégie have decided to join forces, while adapting to the new territories within the Montérégie region. Therefore, the Conseil regional des Élus-CRÉ designates the Suroît Club Export as the organization responsible for offering front-line export services for the West Montérégie region. Following this designation, Suroît Club Export proceeded to reorganize its territory to include two new regions, Jardins-de-Napierville and Roussillon, as well as three new financial partners, the Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and export of Quebec (MDEIE) and the CLDs of Jardins-de-Napierville and Roussillon.
Having seen its territory expanded, now covering the entire West Montérégie, the Suroît Club Export renamed itself to better reflect its new identity: Service d’exportation Montérégie-Ouest (SEMO).
With its clientele now doubled, SEMO operates from two strategic locations: The Suroît head office located in Salaberry-de-Valleyfied and the Jardins-de-Napierville and Roussillon office located in Saint-Constant.
Later, SEMO changed its name to become the Service d’exportation de la Vallée-du-Haut-Saint-Laurent (SEVHSL) and in 2014 with the network of the ORPEX changing its name, the SEVHSL became Commerce International Quebec Montérégie-Ouest (CIQMO).
Even today, the CIQMO still pursues the same objective it had given itself in 1999: to offer front-line services to companies from Montérégie wishing to expand their activities on the international market, thanks to an acquired professional expertise, the development of new services and the creation of a network of contacts adding an additional asset and strength to its services for more than twenty years.
CIQMO is part of the twenty Regional Export Promotion Agencies (ORPEX) of Quebec. They were created to fulfill a request from companies wishing to be supported in a structured way in their commercial effort on international markets. All companies in Quebec can benefit from this expertise since there is one ORPEX per region.