Backing women’s global export ambition this IWD
Scotland marks International Women’s Day (IWD) with a following event: 'Unlocking growth: going global' on March 10. The national event invites entrepreneurs across Scotland to discover how exporting can accelerate their organisation's growth to reach exciting new horizons.
24 February 2026 | 6 minute read
Across Scotland, women are leading ambitious, innovative businesses, yet too few are tapping into international markets.
Scotland could increase its exports by between £3.4 billion and £10.3 billion over two years if women-led businesses exported at the same rate as men-led businesses. This is according to the Scottish Government’s research into the Gender Export Gap in Scotland.
International Women’s Day (IWD) on 8 March 2026 is an ideal moment to champion equality and expand opportunity. It does this by encouraging Scotland’s women entrepreneurs to explore exporting as a growth pathway.
Unlocking opportunities for entrepreneurs in Scotland
To respond to the research findings, Scottish Enterprise is hosting a virtual export event called 'Unlocking growth: going global'. This will feature a panel discussion to celebrate IWD on Tuesday 10 March, 2026 from 11am to 12pm GMT.
Businesswomen and entrepreneurs across Scotland are invited to take part. The event will appeal to you if you're exporting for the first time, are an early stage exporter, or looking to grow into new international markets.
During the event, you’ll hear how global opportunities have helped drive and unlock growth for women entrepreneurs, where they succeeded, and the pitfalls and challenges they encountered. You'll also discover lessons learned and what’s next for their company’s plans to scale up.
Learn from inspiring business women
Women-led firms operate across Scotland’s diverse sectors, from food and drink to digital technology, textiles to tourism, and energy to health innovation. Many already offer products and services with strong international potential. However, exporting remains underutilised, often due to barriers such as lower confidence, reduced access to export networks, and a lack of targeted support.
The panel will feature Kerry Campbell of 8 Doors Distillery, now expanding its exports, securing growth in Japan and finding competitive US opportunities. It will also include Fiona Lindsay of Reblade, the UK’s first wind energy decommissioning specialist, which is exploring European markets and scaling rapidly to build its global brand.
Angela Mathis, Chief Executive and Co-founder of ThinkTank Maths Ltd, and a GlobalScot will host the virtual event. She will share her expert international trade experience and guidance on going global. ThinkTank Maths Ltd is a private DeepTech company in Edinburgh, creating solutions for energy transition and space domain awareness.
A trade policy expert from Scottish Government will be on the panel to discuss key challenges and feedback from the recent Gender Export Gap in Scotland research.
Richard Lochhead, Scottish Minister for Business and Employment
Maximising the untapped potential of women exporters
Exporting can significantly accelerate growth for women-led businesses. And Scottish Enterprise is here to make it happen. International sales expand customer bases, increase revenue opportunities and build brand credibility. Exposure to global markets drives innovation and competitiveness, while international networks enable partnerships, investment, and collaboration.
The 2025 Gender Export Gap report identified barriers that disproportionately affect women entrepreneurs. These include lower confidence, caring responsibilities, limited access to expert networks, and a concentration of women-owned businesses in sectors less traditionally linked to exporting.
Our event on 10 March will feature women who've helped steer their businesses to success, and unlock exporting opportunities.
8 Doors Distillery opened in 2022 and is the most northern mainland whisky distillery in Scotland located in John O’Groats. The distillery blends tradition and innovation to craft its range of Scotch whiskies, and its award-winning Five Ways blended whisky liqueur.
You'll hear on the event panel how the co-founder Kerry Campbell has led the growth of the business. It's now exporting to Japan, Germany, and Singapore.
Kerry Campbell, Co Founder of 8 Doors Distillery
Scottish Enterprise support for women-led global growth
Scottish Enterprise provides support, advice and tools to help women-led firms prepare for international growth. For example, the Export Assessment Tool gives businesses a personalised diagnostic of their export readiness. It also highlights strengths, identifies gaps and recommends tailored next steps.
Scotland’s entrepreneurial ecosystem continues to show what’s possible. For example, the Pathways to Scale programme is successfully running again in 2025–26 with continued high impact for the participating cohort of female founders.
Their journey began with a dynamic leadership development retreat where they connected, collaborated and built momentum for growth. The founders had the opportunity to explore how they could strengthen and build their confidence to lead ambitious, scaling businesses. This was through Insights Discovery™ sessions and fireside style conversations with inspirational female founders from scaling businesses who've dedicated time for personal development.
The seven month programme saw the women participate in several entrepreneurship masterclasses to build strong connections with each other. They've formed a valuable peer network of like-minded talented, innovative leaders equipped with ambitions for growth. The programme will culminate in March with an investor showcase event where they'll pitch their businesses to guests from across the investor community.
Our showcase event early next month is an opportunity for pitching to the investment community and networking with ecosystem guests. This will include keynote speaker, Jacqui Gale, one of our new Scottish Enterprise Board members.
GlobalScot and connectors from Scotland’s entrepreneurial and investment ecosystem can support them as their businesses grow.
Another shining example of women growing their businesses, especially in export markets, is ProfessorMe, based in Edinburgh. The organisation was founded by two women, Dr Kate Smith and Daisy McConville.
This education‑technology startup develops AI‑powered digital professors to support university students and academic staff.
Co-founders of ProfessorMe Dr Kate Smith (left) and Daisy McConville
Thinking big. Thinking internationally
These ambitious women are taking advantage of the support on offer to create a clear, accessible pathway to enter global markets.
On 10 March 2026, the 'Unlocking growth: going global event' will celebrate women who want to grow internationally, offering inspiration, practical insights and real-life examples of how exporting can accelerate scale-up journeys.
The event and International Women’s Day celebrate empowerment, ambition, and opportunity. For Scotland’s women-led businesses, exporting offers all three attributes. Global markets are increasingly open to Scottish innovation, and women entrepreneurs play a vital role in shaping Scotland’s international presence.
Whether you’re still exploring possibilities or ready to scale internationally, now is the moment for women in Scotland to step forward and go global.
Reserve your place at the Unlocking growth:going global event on 10 March opens in a new window
Learn more
Discover the support we offer to explore new markets and export opportunities.
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