Figures published today show that many small- and medium-sized companies are putting investment decisions on hold amid economic uncertainty.

Figures published today show that many small- and medium-sized companies are putting investment decisions on hold amid economic uncertainty.

According to a Bank of Scotland survey of around 1000 companies with a turn-over of up to £1m, some 77% would rather hold on to their cash rather than make any immediate decisions about investment in the business.

But despite expressing an intention to rein back their spending, small business owners are still investing more back in to their businesses than they are saving.

Nearly four in 10 (37%) SMEs in Scotland are investing more back into their business than they are saving. One in six (16%) is saving and investing in equal amounts and only one in ten is saving more each month that they are investing back into the business.

More than a third (35%) of small business owners are neither saving nor investing.

However, among those companies bucking the cautious trend is Glasgow-based 2FluidCreative, a digital, marketing and e-commerce design agency, which currently has a turnover of £1.5m. Within 12 months it wants to treble this to £4.5m.

The company, which numbers brewer Tennent's, supermarket Asda and bookmaker Ladbrokes among its clients, reports having signed "some major new deals" in the first quarter of the year, and managing director Jacqueline Doherty has brought in a new commercial business development team.

The company has an office in Spain but is targeting further expansion on the continent and is also aiming to establish a presence in England.

Doherty, who set up the business in 2001 and now employs 22 staff, said: "The business has been doing really well and we just wanted to develop it even further and bring in a team who could work on the commercial side of this solely concentrating on business development.

"I have high ambitions for the company and we are aiming to treble turnover for next year and also extend the business to opening an office in London. We already have one in Barcelona so one in London was the next logical step."

Presentation and event production company Cameron Presentations, which is based in Glasgow and Edinburgh, has also been investing in the business, spending £350,000 on new equipment.

Campbell MacLeod, director and hire manager for Cameron Presentations, despite acknowledging "a challenging six months ahead" said the company, which had a turn- over of £2.9m last year, needed to invest in the equipment, included audio desks and LED lights, to keep ahead of the competition.

"Investing in the new equipment and vans was essential for us to remain at the forefront of technology and to enable us to better service clients throughout Scotland.

"We have been growing as a company since 1988 and we have invested in equipment on an annual basis.

"We opened an Edinburgh office two years ago which now has a turnover of over £350,000 and we aim to grow this by at least another 75% in the next year."