Mid-sized business boost in Turkey
Lord Green and John Cridland lead the first trade mission to focus solely on mid-sized businesses to Turkey later this week.
The mission will take around 30 UK mid-sized businesses on a two-day intensive visit to Turkey to boost trade and investment between the two countries.
The UK companies, including Amino Technologies, Black Country Metals and Brompton Bicycles, will meet key figures from the Turkish Government and business community. They will get the opportunity to build and strengthen new and existing links in a growing market.
Trade and Investment Minister, Lord Green, said:
鈥淭his is an exciting mission, the first of its kind, that brings together the opportunity offered by Turkey, one of the fastest growing economies in the world, and the export potential of the UK鈥檚 mid-sized firms.
鈥淭he Government has set a clear target to get another 100,000 UK firms exporting as a key part of driving economic recovery. Direct engagement with key figures from the government and business community will help break down barriers and foster understanding that will lay strong foundations for future trade and investment.鈥�
John Cridland, CBI Director-General, said:
鈥淭his trade mission breaks new ground, as the first one designed specifically for ambitious mid-sized businesses. If we are to achieve the Government鈥檚 ambition of doubling our annual exports by 2020 to 拢1 trillion, we must look beyond the BRIC countries to other successful, high-growth markets such as Turkey.
鈥淭urkey has a dynamic, growing economy, with an increasingly aspirant middle class keen to buy the sorts of goods and services we excel at, such as construction, education, and high-value manufacturing.鈥�
Growing business
The mission brings together the Department for Business, UK Trade and Investment and the CBI and their joint focus on helping to improve the performance of mid-sized businesses, announced as part of the .
Business and Enterprise Minister Mark Prisk outlined the three key areas where mid-sized firms could improve their performance:
- Harnessing leadership capability.
- Supporting access to finance for investment and growth.
- Encouraging export as a strategy for growth.
The mission is a key part of the work to unlock growth among the UK鈥檚 10,000 mid-sized businesses.
They have been described by the CBI as a 鈥渇orgotten army鈥� of businesses, representing 0.2 per cent of all UK firms but accounting for one fifth of private sector output and employment.
The CBI report set out how, with the right conditions, mid-sized businesses could unlock up to 拢20 billion annual GDP in the next ten years.
The outcomes and experiences of this mission will help pave the way for future mid-sized business focused visits concentrating on key emerging markets.
Turkey is already an important partner for British businesses with trade currently worth more than 拢9 billion.
Major British companies like BP, Tesco, Vodafone, and HSBC already have a strong presence in Turkey, but there is scope to strengthen this relationship further.