By thinking globally, Nottinghamshire businesses can benefit the economy locally – that’s the message from Nottinghamshire County Council ahead of an event encouraging more companies to consider exporting goods and services.

The council has teamed up with UK Trade and Investment, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber of Commerce and East Midlands Airport to host the Routes to Growth event on 7th April, which coincides with the start of Export Week.

Small businesses from across Nottinghamshire are invited to attend the breakfast event at the Radisson Blu Hotel, East Midlands Airport.

A number of Nottinghamshire’s leading exporters will share their experiences of moving their companies from humble beginnings to successfully trading around the world.

Experts will provide practical advice on overcoming the barriers to exporting, such as how to get started, financing business growth, maximising returns from digital marketing and dealing with language and cultural differences.

A showcase of the on-going support for businesses will be available.

Counc Diana Meale, chairman of the Economic Development Committee, said: “Many small and medium-sized businesses don’t even consider exporting their goods and services because they think it is too problematic but we hope, through this event, to show them that it is much more straightforward than they might think.

“There are practical issues to overcome when exporting, but support is there every step of the way and the rewards for the business – and the Nottinghamshire economy – are potentially huge.

“Thanks to the major improvements to Nottinghamshire’s digital infrastructure, which the council is supporting, faster broadband speeds mean the opportunities to trade throughout the world are greater than ever and we really want our busineses to take full advantage.”

The Routes to Growth event starts at 7.30am.

Places are free but businesses wanting to attend will need to register at www.exportweek.ukti.gov.uk as places are limited.