Scotland Podcast Studio's
Creator of Podcasts for King Street Studios, Johnston Media Podcasts,
Scotland Podcast Studio's
How Business Gateway Helps Stirling Firms Grow
Starting a business shouldn’t feel like walking into a maze. We sat down with Business Gateway at STEP in Stirling to unpack a simpler path: begin with one advisor who learns your goals, pinpoints what’s next, and connects you to the exact support you need. From the earliest spark of an idea to the first hires and beyond, we talk through how hands-on guidance, practical workshops, and targeted funding can turn momentum into measurable growth.
You’ll hear how the advisor model creates continuity, saving founders weeks by directing them to the right expert on day one. We dig into Meet the Expert sessions for fast answers on accounting, HR, branding, IT, and legal questions, plus funded and subsidised projects through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund that bring specialists into your business to solve real problems. When a company is ready to scale, we explore how warm introductions to Scottish Enterprise open doors to innovation support and capital grants, with account managers focused on growth and productivity.
Because this is Stirling, the support is rooted in the local economy. We discuss sector-themed programmes for tourism and hospitality, community breakfasts that spark partnerships, and collaboration with the BID, Chambers, CodeBase, Techscaler, Supplier Development Programme, and Scottish EDGE. The thread running through it all is objectivity and encouragement: no gatekeeping, no jargon, just clear steps and honest feedback that help you test ideas, refine plans, and execute with confidence.
If you’re ready to move from thinking to doing, tap into your local network. Subscribe for more founder stories and practical playbooks, share this with someone who needs a nudge to start, and leave a review with the one question you want us to tackle next.
Welcome back to Studio King Street for the Sterling Business Podcast, and I'm delighted to have a guest today from the uh Sterling Enterprise Park and the Business Gateway. Alan Portius, welcome. Hi. Thank you for coming along. So Alan is a business support advisor uh for the Business Gateway down at Step, supporting lots of uh businesses, you know, as they kind of uh you know find themselves and start to scale. Um so thank you for coming along to have a conversation about the services that STEP can offer. Um can you explain to the listeners, uh, just to start us off, what the uh what your role is within the organization and what the capabilities are on the business scale.
SPEAKER_00:I suppose my my role is all about engagement. Uh I think and and that engagement can be entirely different depending how old the business is. You know, we we deal with such a wide range of clients that, you know, if it's a a pre-start business, it could be somebody that's just got a very, very basic idea. Um, so that engagement involves being very encouraging, you know, creating, I know it's an American phrase, but creating a bit of a can-do approach to this, encouraging people to investigate their business idea a little bit further. We've got people who kind of have done all their prep and they're just ready to go. And maybe we're looking at funding and things like that. Um business planning, potentially encouraging that, putting a bit of foundation into the business. So it would it would involve that as the business grows. Uh I I think it's our responsibility to offer a bit of support and maybe some signposting within that. Again, we will we will speak to the clients, hopefully, we'll get a rapport with them and we'll we'll get to the nitty-gritty of what they're trying to do. But ultimately, a lot of that is going to be understanding what this who the support mechanisms are and support partners that we have and signposting onwards to you know to potentially uh make that growth process a little bit more seamless. You know, the the obvious thing tends to be our relationship with Scottish Enterprise, for example. Right, okay. You know, that there's always been an intrinsic link between Scottish Enterprise and Business Gateway, and we would always be on the lookout for our clients and indeed clients coming through the door that satisfy that growth criteria enough that we would then act as the say you know segue into their um support. So again, we've got strong links with SE. So we would be making that introduction and explaining what they could potentially do to be.
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00:Uh absolutely um because again, we we are a little bit more hands-on, we we are in tune with the local economy. Um we speak to clients, we speak to these businesses, probably a little bit more than others do, and we're uniquely positioned. I think that we can see the businesses growing themselves, maybe even from a startup that we dealt with. And then we can see listen, the time is right, that that you should maybe move on and and and and and tap into a little bit more specialised support that SE can give that we that we can't.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, so what is the remit of Scottish Enterprise and how do they when you hand over the button, what what what do they do with with the business typically?
SPEAKER_00:Well the the the the they s they have swung a little bit between leaving the clients with us and uh and dipping into the the necessity that that the client might have at a time or what they would call account management. Um and they're sort of back towards that again, that that ethos that they will have an advisor that would take on that client effectively. Those clients are sort of experienced and probably don't need a mentor, but there will be a designated advisor there that will look at the full remit of what the clients are doing and and uh and and try and tap into all the SE resource that's potentially there.
SPEAKER_01:Okay.
SPEAKER_00:A lot of it involves around innovation, right? To be honest. But you know, they they they constantly they've they've just announced a lot of new funding, capital expenditure grants and things like that. So yeah, but but it is a bigger concern. Yeah. It will probably be looking at a business that's got at least a minimum of ten employees and looking to, you know, really grow to the extent that their turnover is going to exponentially grow. So again, we we've just got to be on the lookout for that and say, I think you fit this bill, let's move it on a little step.
SPEAKER_02:And with the business gateway, um, is there a um business size? Uh do you deal with small, medium, large, or is it is is is there no literally across the board.
SPEAKER_00:Um we have uh we it back in the day in the diminished past, we would have had business startup advisors, business growth advisors. But really we've got we've got quite a specialized team that's been together for quite a while now and we we tend to do a little bit of everything. So I think that fosters a more global knowledge of what's out there and and also I think it it means that we we as advisors can stay hopefully with a client that maybe came to us with a little tiny nugget of an idea away at the start. We helped them into the you know into self-employment maybe as a sole trader, and then you know, as they grew, we were still there. And I think that works a little bit better, probably, than having an advisor and then introducing them to somebody else, to somebody else who doesn't really know the individual or know the nature of the business.
SPEAKER_02:So the way that um you guys typically work, so you have an advisor uh allocated to to a particular business, yourself being one of those, I guess Simon Orr would be another good example of that. Yep. And then um you you have some package services, I guess, that sit behind what you provide as an advisor. Um could you give us some examples of some of the services that you can uh offer and support um support businesses with?
SPEAKER_00:Well, I I think it starts with it with that designated advisor side of things because as I say, I think that's important. And we would potentially that advisor would act as the hub for it for potentially every query that the client is going to have. Just classic account management at the same time. Yeah, we would we would start with uh ideally a face-to-face meeting, because I think it always works a little bit better. But if people are you know haven't got the time or whatever, we'll do a Teams meeting or we'll do a phone call or or what have you. Um from there, um I suppose it's my job to identify the business gateway scope of service. You know, there's a lot everything that we offer is free. Um, so we've got you know, there's workshops and webinars. You can go into the business gateway website and sign up for a free uh webinar on a a chosen subject. That that's kind of useful. Um we've got a nice little program called Meet the Expert. And Meet the Expert has us, I think we've probably developed a nice, a merry band of local professionals over the last five to six years or so. And what they do is they give a little bit of time back to the uh to our clients, they get a free half-hour chat on the subject that's important to them. So it could be an accountant, solicitor, HR, um IT, sales and marketing, branding, uh commercial property. That that sort of stuff.
SPEAKER_02:So do these um do these experts, as you call them, do they typically uh provide partner services? So if if uh a client wanted to take advantage of, I don't know, some legal advice and and they're getting some expert advice from that particular party, um are they on a um partner? We have a framework.
SPEAKER_00:Effectively, and and they're all very trustworthy in that that we've we've we've asked those clients, those consultants to to tender to be on that on that list. And we we make sure they've uh they've either uh sat down and had an interview with us, they've provided bios and testimonials and stuff. And and to be honest, most of them now we've we've been working with for a number of years and we know the quality of the work that they do. So we're more than happy to uh you know to let them loose on our our clients. Um and as I say, for half an hour, it's probably the lowest level of interaction that's that's needed, and it can solve quite a lot of small problems there and there, and maybe a little bit of expertise that maybe the advisors don't have. Um so so we've got that. Um we've we tap into UK Share Prosperity Fund um for our expert help programme, which is basically putting a consultant into a business, um, a business that's got a little bit of growth potential, granted, but uh putting a cut a consultant in to do a pro make good project that we've identified needs to be done, you know. Historically, it could have been website design, it could have been creating a promotional video, it could have been uh general troubleshooting, looking at the accounts, maybe doing a more robust business plan uh for for a funding application, um, a sales and marketing plan, you know, I get HR, you know, again, you know, a lot of businesses that are growing have got the issue of employment, you know. So and they're you know, sometimes the idea of employment contracts, employee handbooks, it's uh you know it can be a bit of a head scratcher for people. So um our internal team at uh at at step tend to pick up and and do the funded side of that for for free for the clients. Right. And indeed, you know, if if it's a slightly bigger project, maybe that fund can support uh a slightly bigger bill at the end of the day. So you might not be getting a a free uh service, but you might be getting a heavily subsidised bill.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, subsidised at the end of the day.
SPEAKER_00:So we we find that's pretty useful. Um what else we'd we've got a nice networking group that's that's growing by the month. Usually the last uh the last week of the month we'll get uh a fairly informal breakfast meeting organized that lets people deal with meet new people at the end of the day. So that that's pretty useful.
SPEAKER_02:Um yeah and some of the the um services around things like HR, marketing support, IT technology, digital, um do you you you resource some of that in-house as well within within the business?
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely. I think Steps quite uniquely placed that we have a very we have a very strong uh HR team that's growing, we have a very strong property team. So, you know, if there are issues in an actual fact, you know, there are they operate on a commercial basis as well. So sometimes there's a natural transition into Steps HR support because they've got nice little flexible packages for businesses that are growing. We always try and fund it to start with, but once that happens.
SPEAKER_02:So they provide package services of and above 100%, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:That kind of introduction. Yeah, absolutely. And even even something as small as once once you're registered with us, you get a lot a weekly newsletter that that that tells you all about the funding that's available, all about the the local business events that are on the go. You know, we're conscious about where we are in the in the scheme of things in the in the look in the Scottish economy. So obviously we've got a lot of hospitality and tourism and whatever. So we will run a tourism month with a lot of workshops that are you know particularly tailored to that. And we've just gone through business.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I think I've seen I've seen one uh recently before Business Month, I've seen the um what was the I think it might have been tourism focused. So you have like themes that you effectively follow from time to time, do you? Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00:And and and and asides from it just being you know an informative session, I think it's I think it's quite valuable to get a whole load of businesses that are all part of the same sector all in the room at the same time.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:You know, because there's got to be complimentary support there, and that that's really what we are for. We are all about co-cooperation. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, we're we're all about uh encouraging sterling businesses to do business with sterling businesses. Yeah. That's what we're here to do. We're not we're not here to support that sounds terrible. We're not here to support Falker Caralo and Perth and and whatever.
SPEAKER_02:We're here for Sterling. Yeah. No, yeah, no, it's it's great. It's very uh it resonates a lot because that's exactly how we we operate here in King Street. Uh we don't have a bar, we don't have a restaurant or a hotel, we use all the local catering and hospitality um businesses around us. So, you know, they grow. If we grow, we're successful, they're successful, and vice versa. So it's uh it's it's really good. So are there any prerequisites um for businesses to engage uh with Business Gateway? Again, absolutely not.
SPEAKER_00:No. You know, the the the the advisor that that that is allocated will sit down and have an informal chat and we'll just hopefully our skill is understanding where those businesses are, whether they're right at the very start of the process or old hands, and we can understand well, we're not here to teach people how to suck eggs in that circumstance. We're here to push people on and signpost, as I say, and get them the best support. You know, we were talking earlier before we started, maybe even just saving a bit of time, you know, so that there's not you know, people are busy and and you know, to to avoid fumbling around for a couple of weeks when you could speak to somebody who could say, Oh, you really want to speak to them and they will solve that problem. Then you know that's us doing our job, I think.
SPEAKER_02:So, as a function, how um do you typically interact or interrelate with other business support functions in the Sterling area or Forth Valley area? So I'm thinking the likes of um Go Fourth Bed, Forth Valley Chambers. Um do you have a relationship and a partnership and how does that work?
SPEAKER_00:I think we try and foster a relationship with anybody in our in a in our network. And you know, you've mentioned two or three, but I could probably I wrote a little list uh before it came in and it was quickly hit hit in 20, 30 types of people that we need to know about. And if somebody comes in and they they they need funding, then there are a number of options to do that. If if they are talking about you know forming a uh you know uh a social enterprise, then then there are some go-to people relating to that, both in terms of support and construction and funding for that. So yeah, there's there's there's a lot. We typically as well have you know, in our our weekly meetings, we are always trying to encourage all the local uh support mechanisms to and partners to come in and speak to us so that they there there is that our advisors are always you know well versed on on what the local delivery is and what changes have been made and what people are now doing. Um so yeah, I think we keep abreast of of of most things because as I say, we we we can't we can't do everything or know everything you know off the top of our heads. So but we are very aware that there are specialisms there.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:And you know, it's knowing that and quickly saying, You don't really want to be speaking to me, but I'll make the introduction to this. Um whether it's you know, and there are so many, you know, we do we deal with uh the supplier development programme if you're looking to tender. There's there's the King's Trust if you're a younger person looking to start in business. Um we've got code base up up there, you know, and tech scalar with all the tech-related businesses. So, you know, again, this is specialized stuff.
SPEAKER_02:Does Scottish Edge fall into any of that category? Do you have any any interaction with uh the you know I think there's a young entrepreneurs looking to expand and grow in in their early days?
SPEAKER_00:I think our ad our advisors have have dealt with that in the past. And I was looking at I was looking at an edge application a few weeks ago, and whereas it's mostly done and it's in a sector that the person that's written it knows far more about it than me. Okay. You know, I I'm looking at that thinking, is that is that a coherent application in the R. Right.
SPEAKER_02:So you're looking at it from a Yeah, from a I guess a business case perspective. Does it make sense? Absolutely. You know, would would that resonate if it if it came across my desk and I was making the decision on application?
SPEAKER_00:Exactly. So sometimes we can just be that we can just be that buffer as well between you know making an application somewhere and and and and again, you know, it's maybe not everybody's bag to do that all the time. So you know, just to have a second set of eyes on that, that's it's used to that. Um and I mean you've talked about the you've talked about the bid. There's you know, my colleague Simon sits on that and goes to all those meetings and and understands and knows what's involved in that. Therefore, he can bring issues that arise from that to us. And likewise when when they're talking about you know what's happening at the coal face, so to speak, of Sterling-based businesses, we can have that knowledge quite uniquely to spread.
SPEAKER_02:Uh I know I know that um a lot of the services within Business Gateway are um funded by Sterling Council. Do you have a lot of interaction with the council on a day-to-day basis? If so, which departments are the same as the other thing. 100%.
SPEAKER_00:Economic development uh team are quite instrumental in in what we are doing. And Alan Conway who's He sat in that chair yesterday. Yeah, relatively new to the new to the post, has has has been excellent at uh at making those links. And we we we always had a link, but it seems to be growing as well. So that which is always encouraging because they are the the prime movers at the end of the day in everything that's happening economically in Stirling. So it uh it behooves us to you know to to to to to be in line with them and know what where they're coming from. Um and the and again hopefully back to that whole idea of us being at the coal face, yeah. You know, that that we we can maybe you know impart some information to them and that they're they might otherwise not have been privy to so that they can do bigger policy decisions on that.
SPEAKER_02:Uh from what what you know of other business gateways or business services in other regions across Scotland, um do you think they're vastly different or do you do anything that you that you think is a bit unique within Sterling?
SPEAKER_00:No, I think we are quite unique in that well I some I I suppose all the business gateway teams would say that, but uh it can be a little bit different. It's about the business gateway program is supposed to be fairly unified. But you know, again, we were talking earlier about sometimes that the way it all works, you know, we uh step run the business gateway program in Stirling. If you go to Falkirk, it's Falkirk Council that run that programme. Um if you go to Aloha, it's a company called Cetrus that do it, and everybody's got a slightly different view. Yes, we can tap into a lot of the the good stuff that Business Gateway offers, um, but we will always, I think because we are in tune with the needs of of our clients, yeah, then you can go and do workshops on online, but we will also do f we will organ also organise face-to-face workshops that we know are the ones that that put bums in seats effectively. You know, we we we we like doing Canva workshops and weeks, build your website workshops and things, which might not turn up on the national curriculum as often, but we know we know that and as I say, a lot of the stuff will potentially be if we're if we're getting speakers in, it may well be tailored to the tourism week because we know we have a lot we we have the national park area that's wide and vast, and and you know we have to be uh supporting you know the hospitality and the tourism-related industries on that. Yeah. So which might not be a priority to Falkirk, who's a which is a little bit more industrial, same with maybe Lanarkshire, which is the same thing. So again, okay.
SPEAKER_02:Very good. So what would you say the objectives of uh Business Gateway in Stirling are for the next twelve months? And obviously you'll be looking to evolve on a you know your your services and your propositions. Uh what what would you say the uh priorities are for the next year or so?
SPEAKER_00:I think it's just maintaining the engagement, to be honest, to to to make sure that people understand that we're here and we're available and we're and we are approachable. And and it doesn't matter what what stage you're at. I I I think, you know, we are going to give the person that has an inkling of an idea, maybe is just disgruntled at their job and is thinking to you know, I just always wanted to uh to to open up a uh a mo a motor parts business or I wanted to be a dog walker or something and I want I want to follow my follow my dreams. Um and you know, we are happy as as happy to speak to somebody like that and set them on their way and get them thinking about the potential and what they're trying to do as we are with the the hardened business person that's firefighting and um are either doing very well or god forbid you know doing not so well. Um you know we're we're just trying to make sure that they know that we're here and and and we'll listen to them and there could be a a substantial resolution to some of our problems, or indeed just somebody to maybe say yes, you could run a business. Sometimes it's as simple as that. And uh, you know, and and and and instilling, as I said at the start, that can-do attitude in people and being encouraging rather than somebody saying, Well, why are you thinking about doing that? It's a terrible, that's a terrible idea. You know, we would never do that. No, it's it's up to the uh it's up to the individuals involved, I think, to research and to business plan and to come to their own conclusions that there is a business idea in here. Yeah, so you're providing guidance frameworks and direction of how they can do that. Yeah, we'll always we'll be supportive, but it will be objective, support at the end of the day. You know, we're not gonna we will we will put a mirror up maybe to you know to some ideas. Um but you know, as somebody was asking me uh fairly recently, you know, uh it's always the the last question and that I get at the end of a meeting, especially with a pre-start thing, saying, So do you think is a good idea?
SPEAKER_01:Yes.
SPEAKER_00:And I and and I've been doing this quite a long time now, and and I don't think it's really my job to say it's a good idea or a bad idea. I've fallen down that route before by thinking that sounds terrible, you know. Nobody wants nobody wants uh hats for dogs, you know, or something. And they go off in the business planet and they go at it with resolve and they come back and you say, How's your hats for dogs business going? And it's going like a fair, it's fantastic, it's really, really good. And I go, Well, there you are now, you know. I I would never have thought that, but but there you are. And the other side of the coin can be you'll hear the greatest, most innovative idea and be bowled over and think, I wish I'd thought of that. You know, that's that's a that's a gold mine waiting to happen. And yet they come back months later and nothing quite has happened with it, or they've moved on to another brilliant idea but left the last one. A shiny object. Yeah, absolutely. And I I think the answer is maybe it just comes down to the people and and their resolution towards doing it, but we can maybe put some things in place and and and some foundation, we can develop a business plan with them, we can give them that objective view rather than maybe they speak to their friends and their family who can sometimes give slightly strange views that are either ridiculously supportive of ideas that are not the best or not very supportive of good ideas. Why do you want to why do you want to do that? Go and get a real job. So I I I I think it's a remit to to to objectively be supportive and take them through that process. Yeah. And and it doesn't cost anything to to plan something and research it at the end of the day, other than a bit of time and commitment.
SPEAKER_02:Okay, Alan, I think we're coming to the end of uh our our time here, but it's been very enlightening. Thank you for sharing the uh the services of Business Gateway in Sterling and um fantastic. We'll we'll definitely have you along again uh on another occasion. Um but thank you very much for your time and uh yeah.
SPEAKER_00:No problem. And and if anybody wants to we're we're very local, we're down at the John Plair building, just down by Liddle in Majestic Wines. Okay. More people seem to know that it's near Majestic Wines in Liddle, I think. But um and and how how can they reach out to you uh online? Um so we have a if it's a start-up situation, we have a business gateway has a planning to start uh uh system and uh you fill in all your details and it and it siphons you off to an advisor depending on your geographical location, depending when you're going to where you're going to start up, potentially. Um that that system also filters through our CRM system to and and and it appears uh and gets and gets allocated to an advisor as well. You can phone our reception um uh if you go onto Steps website, the reception number's there as well, and they'll that'll be passed through. There's lots of ways of ways of contacting, or indeed, as I say, do it the old-fashioned way. Just knock the door and come in and ask to speak to somebody. There will always be an advisor in in the John Player building at some point to speak to you. That's great. Well, thank you, Alan.
SPEAKER_02:And thank you. Speak to you again soon. Thank you. So uh end of another fantastic episode. Uh Alan Portius from Step uh Business Gateway. Thank you uh for Alan's uh in insights today. We'll see you again in the next uh week or two with um some in some additional content from another guest.