Small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) play a vital part in boosting the Scottish economy, providing an estimated 1.2 million jobs and represent 99.3% of all businesses in Scotland. As a driver for wider economic growth their role cannot be underestimated and helping them to become more resilient as they face a growing range of external challenges is a key priority for Business Gateway.
Scotland boasts a well-developed and enviable business support ecosystem which includes Business Gateway and a host of public sector and third sector intermediaries. Their goal is to help drive growth for existing operators and provide support to those starting a business.
We would encourage people to take advantage of this support to help them navigate through the challenges faced by SMEs. These include the more commonplace day to day difficulties of running a business, but also a variety of external factors that include low appetite for investment, skills shortages, Brexit and the shift in American trade and foreign policy which is doing its part to impact on both consumer and business confidence.
Despite these challenges, if business owners are clear on the product or service they will provide, who their customer is and the resources and skills needed in order to take the next step, Business Gateway is always eager to help. Our advisers can help find the missing piece that will advance business growth. We do this through a wide programme of workshops and events and 1-2-1 support designed to build Scottish SMEs capacity and capability to recognise and exploit opportunities as and when they arise. For more information, go to https://www.bgateway.com/
