Partner Article

Exporting is the key to SME growth

Steve Cooper, Vice Chairman of Barclays Business Banking, shares his thoughts on exporting as an SME.

The Diamond Jubilee and London Olympics have focused the world’s attention on the UK, and there has never been a better time to be British. These events create tremendous opportunities for small businesses to trade in international markets.

The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) and UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) certainly believe so; they have committed to raising the number of small businesses that export to one in four by the end of 2012.

We commissioned independent research among 1,500 UK SMEs, which were all at different stages along the exporting process, and the findings reveal just how beneficial exporting can be:

- Businesses that export grow by almost a third in just two years

- Almost a third (29 per cent) of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) see a positive impact on their bottom line within just six months of expanding into international markets

- Over half (54 per cent) said this growth exceeded their expectations

It can be extremely daunting expanding into new territories and can involve a number of additional costs such as taking time to scope out a new market and finding additional resources (raising finance, finding staff etc.) to increase output. However, at Barclays, we are dedicated to helping businesses trade internationally with confidence. Whether a company is ‘born global’ or is looking to export for the first time, we have the experts in place across the globe to offer advice and support.

Given the positive impact of exporting, it’s not surprising that 31 per cent of those who currently export are planning on branching into new markets in the next year. With continuing uncertainty in the Eurozone, our research found that businesses are now looking for export opportunities further afield: the majority of businesses who’ve been exporting for three years or more are planning on branching outside of Europe, with Hong Kong and India topping the list of potential countries to export to.

For those who are not exporting but have the potential to do so, we encourage them to take those first steps on their journey into overseas markets and fully enjoy the benefits that exporting offers.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Barclays Bank PLC .