Casting the net far and wide

Getting a business off the ground and then building it into something substantial is no easy task. For most small businesses starting out, the immediate target is to establish its place in the local market.

Letting people know what your company is about, the services it offers and ensuring the quality is right is the paramount concern.

In those early stages, horizons tend to be limited to a relatively small geographic area and operating in other locations and jurisdictions may not be on the agenda.

Exporting can often be viewed as too problematic a route for businesses to go down – with new market research, the prospects of layer upon layer of red tape and the cash investment required to establish a presence in a new territory all weighing heavily on executives as they draw up their business plans.

But an increasing number of Scottish companies are looking beyond traditional commercial boundaries and seeing their efforts rewarded with significant growth.

While the experience of operating elsewhere in the UK or overseas is not universally positive, this month’s edition of Business Matters proves exporting can be done successfully by businesses both large and small.

Indeed, the Scottish Chambers of Commerce – a key facilitator for firms with ambitions to export – is continuing to encourage companies to go the extra miles, despite the uncertainties that Brexit and the wider global political climate brings.

Regular contributor Ian Forsyth drops in on malt whisky producer Angus Dundee to seee how it goes about marketing itself to the world and chats with Fife semiconductor manufacturer Semefab about running a globally profiled business.

Cobra Mobile also shares its experience of being a world player in the mobile gaming market from a small office at Dundee’s City Quay.

There’s plenty of news and views from Scotland’s commercial scene besides, so sit back and enjoy the March edition of Business Matters.

Exporting canoften be viewed as too problematic a route to go down ... but an increasing number of Scottish companies are seeing their efforts rewarded.

Picture: PA. Scotland needs more exporters to emulate the success of the salmon industry.