Developing export business during a global pandemic.

As we work through the latest road map out of lockdown, it’s a good time to reflect on the challenges that our business has faced over the past 12 months and also to understand how doing business might change, when we get back to the new normal.

No one expects that conducting business will return to how it was pre-Covid 19. But as the ancient Greek philosopher, Plato once said “necessity is the mother of invention” and this certainly applies to our experiences over the past year. Forget grabbing the 6.55 am Ryanair flight from Stansted, with all of the associated stresses and strains. That’s not an option, so how do you continue to create export opportunities when working from your home office.

We have experienced a huge increase in overseas enquiries since we went into lockdown. A lot of this is undoubtedly due to the effectiveness of our marketing team, but I’m sure that people are now more willing to do business without physical contact, which for me personally has been a big surprise. With the use of video conferencing, you can look each other in the eyes and get a good feel for what makes the other person tick. It’s not quite the same as a face to face meeting, but there seems to be a general acceptance that this is an acceptable way to meet for the first time. This is not anecdotal. We are doing business with new companies all over the world for the first time, having never physically shaken hands with them. Personally, I would not have thought that likely 12 months ago.

If it reduces the alarm clock going off a 4.30 am a little, in order to catch the 7.30 am to wherever, then that’s got to be a good thing for me, if not for Ryanair’s CEO, Michael O’Leary.