A major bank has teamed up with Bury-born Manchester United legend Gary Neville to demonstrate how smaller businesses can thrive abroad.
Data from Santander shows that in the past year, international businesses have improved their performance more than "domestic-only" firms, indicating overseas expansion is key to growth for UK companies.
But despite 56 per cent of SMEs having aspirations for international growth, 52 per cent are still hindered by the fear of getting it wrong, the research found.
Former England defender Neville, 49, who has balanced his football punditry commitments with becoming an entrepreneur, said: “I’ve started several businesses, and there are always moments where you have to take a risk - deciding to trade abroad is one of those moments.
"We’re in a challenging economic climate right now but there’s so many business owners with great ideas out there.
"The support Santander offers through its international network will be invaluable for SMEs who want to take that next step.”
A visit to Poland's capital city Warsaw with Preston-based Zabou Casualwear Limited explored some of the steps a business needs to take to begin trading in a new market.
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Through its network of contacts, Santander introduced Zabou to specialists in different areas of business, demonstrating how concerns such as a lack of international contacts, supply chain resilience and a complex regulatory landscape can be easily addressed with the right connections.
Head of ecommerce and marketing at Zabou, Stuart Hames, said: “The door is now open now for our international expansion ambitions.
"With the help of Santander, we’ve met and had face to face conversations with providers we otherwise would not have sat round a table with.
"In a short amount of time, we saw how we could overcome some of the historical challenges we’ve faced and can now plan what our next steps will be, which will certainly involve engaging a local specialist.”
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There is also a desire from SMEs to have greater support from the public sector and private partners to help get them started or expand their international operation.
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Poland country specialist at Santander UK, Magda Crosa, said: “From our conversations with UK businesses we can clearly see that they are facing a real challenge when it comes to growing and scaling internationally.
"Anything from finding the right connections or resources in market to regulatory aspects is a challenge when you begin or want to increase your international operations.
"We wanted to demonstrate the kind of support that SMEs can access if they want to expand abroad, and just how easy it can be to make the first moves with the right connections.
"While we took Zabou to Poland, Santander has more than 350 global connections on its Santander Navigator platform covering 35 markets around the globe and can help SMEs connect with specialists across 85 per cent of UK trade flows.”
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