Virtual tour to boost Scots SMEs

A major initiative is being launched next week in a bid to help small businesses across Scotland try and recover from the impact of the pandemic.

Helen Ross and Eilidh Marshall from Inverness PR firm Whale-Like Fish who are taking part in the Small Business Saturday UK roadshow .

Small Business Saturday UK, which encourages consumers to shop local and support firms in their communities, is offering support and mentoring for entrepreneurs affected by the pandemic via an online roadshow.

The initiative, which comes ahead of Small Business Saturday on the first weekend in December, launches in Inverness tomorrow, followed by Fort William and Oban on Tuesday and Edinburgh on Wednesday.

The tour will offer an intensive programme of locally targeted online advice and mentoring. It will also feature workshops and interviews with a range of businesses including Inverness PR firm Whale-like-fish, which aims to make PR and communication services more accessible to small companies in the Highlands. It will be running a PR workshop on the tour for such firms continuing to struggle during the pandemic.

Also signed up to help out is Jo MacFarlane Candles of Anstruther, and A Wee Pedal, a sustainable cycling tour business run by Leanne Farmer in Edinburgh, which will be one of the businesses spotlighted as part of the tour’s visit to the Scottish capital.

Michelle Ovens, director of Small Business Saturday UK, said: “This year has been incredibly tough for small businesses – financially, operationally, mentally and emotionally. This means our mission to support and celebrate small businesses across the UK becomes even more vital and ambitious.

“This crisis has brought home just how much small firms are at the heart of our communities. It’s vital we continue to support small businesses as this crisis continues, which is why we are determined to make this year’s campaign the most impactful ever. I would encourage small businesses across Scotland to get involved in the tour.”

Small Business Saturday UK is now in its eighth year and the tour is being supported by BT.

Alan Lees, director of BT’s enterprise unit in Scotland, said: “Despite this year being phenomenally tough for small businesses across Scotland, we have seen many businesses embrace the benefits that being more digital can bring; for them, their employees and their customers. To make that leap, they need support and encouragement.

"We all have a role to play in helping our small business community and we look forward to offering mentoring support and helping them to develop their digital skills through our BT Skills for Tomorrow programme.”

A recent survey commissioned for Small Business Saturday UK found that coronavirus lockdowns have boosted the nation’s love for UK small businesses, with 59 per cent of respondents saying they now support local businesses more than previously.

Last year’s Small Business Saturday event saw an estimated £800 million spent with small businesses across the UK, with a record turnout of 17.6 million people choosing to shop local on the day.

A grassroots, not-for-profit campaign, Small Business Saturday was founded by American Express in the US in 2010. The credit card firm remains the principal supporter of the campaign in the UK.

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