Aboard the Locate in Kent yacht at the MIPIM real estate exhibition in Cannes in March, he told fDi: “We are a private company and I have to deliver against targets. So you go where the leads are.”

These, he reckons, are coming from European location consultants and property agents. US investment does come into Kent but mostly by way of UK subsidiaries of the parent companies. Abbot Laboratories, for example, recently expanded their existing operations through subsidiary Murex Biotech at its site in Dartford.

Locate in Kent also maximises the use of its web site as a marketing medium – potential investors can even use it to make a property search. “The website has lots of tools and is at the centre of our marketing strategy,” says Mr Wookey.

Mr Wookey has something of a history with the south-eastern county. Before taking up his current role, he worked for Kent County Council (KCC) for 8 years in the Economic Development Unit where he was a member of the Senior Management Team. In his role as assistant county economic development officer, he was involved in developing a range of strategic sites across Kent.

Before joining KCC, Mr Wookey worked for the Development Board for Rural Wales as an economic development officer and Newborough Borough Council as a graduate town planner.