As Vice President Government Affairs & Public-Private Partnerships, André Schwarz is responsible for liaison with trade associations, public-sector clients, and local, regional and national government. Having created this position in response to the growing demand in the market for B2B digital infrastructure in Germany and elsewhere in Europe, the company is embarking on dialogue at an institutional level.
“The Mercateo Unite Group has become a European platform opening up a strategic collaboration agenda for trade associations, public procurement and government. Harnessing these opportunities is a huge task. Particularly in the key areas of future concern – sustainability, cross-sector digitalisation and European data sovereignty – I see many overlaps with political challenges. Here, we’re entering a new dialogue as a solution provider,” explains André Schwarz. A qualified economist, he was previously deputy general manager of the BGA German Wholesale and Foreign Trade Association (BGA), where he was responsible for communication and headed the BGA’s digitalisation working group. His many projects at national level included establishing a research association to analyse the wholesale sector.
“Having such a strong candidate as André Schwarz for this new role was a real stroke of luck. For two decades, he’s been one of the central figures promoting the B2B agenda at the national level in Germany. Given his passion for these areas, he’ll open important solution scenarios with our public stakeholders that will be mutually beneficial,” declared Bernd Schönwälder, a member of Mercateo Unite’s executive board. Reinforcing the team in this way is part of the company’s broader strategic positioning, enabling the European platform to offer new cooperation structures for B2B supply relationships.
