Small businesses and entrepreneurs across rural Scotland will be able to access free practical advice on growing their businesses online, thanks to a new Amazon Academy programme for rural SMEs being run in partnership with Scottish Enterprise and Scottish Development International.
I look forward to working with Amazon and other partners to expand opportunities to all our rural businesses as part of our commitment to inclusive economic growth.
Four events are planned for later this year in Aberdeen, Dumfries, Inverness and Selkirk with the first event scheduled for Wednesday 3rd October in Dumfries as part of Business Gateway Dumfries and Galloway’s Business Week.
Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy and Connectivity, Fergus Ewing said: “I welcome the establishment of the Amazon Academy in rural Scotland, which is aimed at helping to unlock the growth and export potential of rural SMEs and micro enterprises. Interest from the private sector and the use of digital expertise will be vital to growing the rural economy going forward and these initial academies will aid that aim. I look forward to working with Amazon and other partners to expand opportunities to all our rural businesses as part of our commitment to inclusive economic growth.”
The programme was announced following a report we commissioned which found that unlocking the digital potential of rural areas in Scotland could add between £1.2bn and £2.5bn annually in Gross Value Added (GVA) to Scotland’s rural economy, and at least £1.44bn in rural business turnover.
Over 10,000 rural businesses across the UK currently sell on Amazon to grow their business online.
“Every day, we see digital tools and services levelling the playing field between businesses operating in urban and rural parts of the country, whether that’s exporting locally produced goods or using cloud computing to scale their business,” said Doug Gurr, UK Country Manager, Amazon. “We know that Scotland has huge potential to grow its rural economy through digital, and hope that this programme will inspire more businesses in rural areas to embrace e-commerce.”
