The Middle East has been a fertile market for Scottish companies over the past decade.
According to the latest Global Connections Survey from the Scottish Government, exports to the Middle East increased from £1.3 billion in 2012 to £1.5 billion in 2013. A decade before Scottish exports to the region were valued at £830 million.
Scottish companies have obviously already capitalised on the opportunities there, but Colin Crabbe, of Scottish Development International's High Growth Markets Unit, believes there is room for more Scottish businesses.
"If your product or service solves a problem in the market here, then that problem is most certainly going to exist in the Middle East, so there's an opportunity for you there," he says.
However, you must be prepared to go and meet your potential customers and clients in person. "It's a culture where they like to make friends with people before they do business.
"So face-to-face meetings - being able to spend time with people, getting to know them and meeting them socially - helps immensely," adds Crabbe, who himself lived and worked in the Middle East for 20 years.
Fortunately getting to the region is becoming easier all the time, with the number of direct flights from Scottish airports increasing.
In May 2015, Qatar Airways increases the frequency of its Edinburgh-Doha flights to daily and there are other direct flights from Scotland to Dubai and from June to Abu Dhabi.
The direct flights make a huge impact on doing business in the region, says Crabbe. "Literally people can get on an afternoon plane, arrive seven and a half hours later, ready to do a day's work.
"Very often the restricting thing in airline travel is transiting between flights so a direct link helps a lot."
The Edinburgh flight to the Qatari capital Doha is one link that Crabbe thinks offers particular potential for Scots businesses.
Qatar has one of the world's most vibrant economies with a growth rate in 2012 of 12.1 per cent and one of the highest GDP per capita figures.
The headline project is the World Cup in 2022, although its oil and gas industry and finance sector underpin its economic success.
"With the fall in the oil price some projects in Qatar have been cancelled, but what I'm seeing is that it's bringing their focus back on to the World Cup in 2022 and projects associated with that.
"We delivered the Commonwealth Games very successfully. There will be companies that have picked up a lot of experience around sporting events and they should be looking to try to use that expertise in Qatar," adds Crabbe.
"Scotland has done very well in the Middle East in food and drink. The profile of high end produce appeals to the five-star hotels. I think that could be an opportunity as we approach 2022."
The World Cup is not the only area of commercial opportunity. "The railway projects are huge. They want to connect up across Saudi Arabia going from west to east and then going down the Gulf coast and from Qatar and Bahrain down to the Emirates."
Crabbe adds: "The contracts being put out are vast. Perhaps our opportunity is not at tier 1 level but, as it comes down the supply chain, I'm sure there are opportunities."
Another major development is the ambitious Musheireb urban renewal and heritage project in downtown Doha.
Crabbe also points to education, culture and software as areas worth exploring. There are plenty of other opportunities - if you know where to look.
"People have a general understanding of these markets, but they don't specifically know the kind of opportunities that are there or what they might look like."
Crabbe's High Growth Markets Unit is dedicated to raising awareness of those opportunities. "We're using our expertise to help people get into the Middle East.
"It's for companies at an early stage - it's about the more general issues. Then our sector teams with their deep expertise or our field teams in the Middle East can come in to provide further support."
Further information
Scottish Development International's High Growth Markets Unit's team of Middle East business advisers. Tel: 0800 141 2128 or click here.
Qatar Airways www.qatarairways.com
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