Scottish walking tour business establishes new routes for growth

About the business

First established in 2017, Walking Tours in the UK gives visitors and locals the chance to explore cities, towns and hotspots with expert local tour guides. Breaking the stereotype of traditional, boring tour guides, Walking Tours in the UK has guides from all walks of life, allowing people to discover the UK through a passionate local’s eyes.

We had no idea when we launched our first tour all those years ago that it would snowball as much as it did. Business Gateway has been a fantastic source of support and has helped us establish a solid plan for business growth over the next few years. We wouldn’t have been able to access the high-quality support and funding without them.

Jenny Benson, Co-founder, Walking Tours in the UK

How Business Gateway has helped

After a few years of successfully running the business and navigating the challenges of the pandemic, Jenny and Liv looked to develop a longer-term strategy to ensure their business kept growing. They approached Business Gateway in 2022, having engaged with the service’s webinars when Walking Tours in the UK first launched.  

Through Business Gateway, Jenny and Liv benefitted from one-to-one support from a dedicated business adviser, as well as expert advice on hiring and routes to funding.  

Support from their Business Gateway adviser allowed the pair to access a Tier 2 Consultancy Award to the value of £6,750 from the Glasgow City Council, ERDF funded, Glasgow Business Growth Programme. This funding allowed them to access consultancy support from experts at Matrix, a business growth consultancy business, who have helped to future-proof the business and to develop a robust growth strategy plan.

Jenny was also able to participate in a Women-Led Accelerator programme. This was also part of the ERDF funded Glasgow Business Growth programme, a nine-week business support programme designed to support 15 ambitious female-led Glasgow SMEs who are keen to achieve business growth.  

Walking Tours in The UK now operates in 13 cities including Liverpool and Birmingham and has more than 50 tour guides. Jenny and Liv have recently introduced new ‘Wee Walk and a Whisky’ tours in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Oban, a ‘Wee Walk and a Cocktail’ in St Andrews, as well as a ‘Wee Walk and a Gin’ tour in Stirling. 

Jenny Benson, Co-founder, Walking Tours in the UK, said: “We had no idea when we launched our first tour all those years ago that it would snowball as much as it did. Business Gateway has been a fantastic source of support and has helped us establish a solid plan for business growth over the next few years. We wouldn’t have been able to access the high-quality support and funding without them.” 