FOCUS FEATURE


EXPORTING


Launching you into the world of export


Business decisions often centre round risk and reward. Business Network Editor Nathan Fearn looks at why, when it comes to trading internationally, the support on offer can help tip the balance very much in favour of the latter.


For time immemorial people, businesses and countries have traded internationally. From as far back as the 19th Century BC, for example,


records reveal the existence of an Assyrian merchant colony in Cappadocia, now modern-day Turkey. It would appear that as far back as humans were able to meaningfully communicate, trade has been a bedrock of civilisation. Of course, fast forward 40 centuries or so and the


climate of trading is unrecognisable to the one the ancient Assyrian merchants would have known. Yet the same desire, willingness, appetite and principles remain. From the ancient Egyptians trading across the Red Sea,


the Dutch, French and Italian merchants who settled in London in Tudor times, the Victorian era, which saw the UK referred to as the ‘workshop of the world’, to the formation of the European Single Market in 1993 - international trade has underpinned how individuals, businesses, societies, countries, indeed the world, survive and thrive. Yet the growth in international trade has been seemingly


exponential over recent centuries – presenting challenges and unprecedented opportunities in the process. What has allowed for such a drastic change in conditions


and activity is the evolutions of how we trade and the tools available to us. Transport, technology, communications, all have evolved


through recent centuries, allowing for trade to become ever-more complex, wide-reaching and of ever-increasing importance. In an increasingly globalised world that can see trade conducted from one side of the world to the other in seconds rather than months – as would have been the case just a relatively short time ago – the world of business is connected like it has never been before. Our World in Data, an online publication which shows


how living conditions are changing, characterises the evolutions that have led to the growth in international trade opportunities, stating: “From a historical perspective, international trade has grown remarkably in the last couple of centuries… and in the last decades trade expansion has been faster than ever before. Today, the sum of exports and imports across nations is higher than 50% of global production. At the turn of the 19th Century this figure was below ten per cent. In the last couple of decades, transport


46 business network February 2018


and communication costs have decreased across the world, and preferential trade agreements have become more and more common, particularly between the UK and emerging economies. In fact, trade among developing nations more than tripled in the period 1980–2011”. While the exporters of times gone by undoubtedly lay


foundations and developed successful trade relations, partnerships and promoted an environment conducive to trading overseas, the modern-day effects of international trade are arguably more pronounced. There are incredible case studies and stories out there


relating to businesses of all sizes and sectors that have used international trade and the tools and guidance available to them to boost themselves stratospherically on the world stage – be it in terms of extended brand identity, sales, or both. Speaking to Business Network, Dr Nik Kotecha, CEO of Chamber strategic partner Morningside Pharmaceuticals, has discussed how he and his wife turned an idea in a garage into a globally-renowned business, operating in a niche market of providing high quality British medicines to developing countries. There are less niche examples. McDonalds, which has long


since transcended its humble beginnings as a Californian restaurant in 1940, has over 34,000 restaurants worldwide and it’s probably easier to name the countries in which they don’t have a presence than the countries in which they do. So given how crucial trading internationally has been


historically, how its importance continues to grow and how the opportunities seem almost limitless, why is exporting overseas still seen by some as a leap into the unknown and too much of a risk to consider? There is no doubt the fear of the unknown can be a


factor. For a struggling business, expanding into overseas markets must appear a daunting and risky undertaking. For a business thriving, there may be the temptation to go down the ‘if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it’ line of thinking if domestic profits are good and the order book full. More macro factors will also undoubtedly play a part too.


Brexit continues to create uncertainty, especially when it comes to trading with Europe, while the 2012 recession and subsequent economic downturn is still a vivid memory for many business leaders.


‘The growth in international trade has been seemingly exponential over recent centuries – presenting challenges and unprecedented opportunities in the process’


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