Step Up with International Tartans
International Tartans is a social enterprise that revitalises Scotland’s textile heritage by combining tradition, inclusion and innovation. Based in Eyemouth, they offer training and employment to vulnerable women and young people through advanced tailoring and craft skills and specialist support. Step Up is supporting their growth so they can expand their work, reaching more people.
Revitalising heritage through social impact
International Tartans is revitalising the Scottish Borders textile industry through heritage, inclusion and innovation. With more than 130 registered tartans, they create ethical products for domestic and international markets, strengthening cultural identity, fostering community, and extending impact through humanitarian initiatives such as Tartans for Africa, which supports community enterprise globally.
They also support vulnerable women and young people through heritage and craft programmes, work placements and enterprise support. This includes helping students learn creative skills that lead to further education, enterprise and employment opportunities. Their school programmes also inspire future careers in textiles, sustainability and social enterprise.
Supporting the First Minister’s priorities to grow the economy, they have built strong partnerships with leading mills, retailers and global networks.
After taking part in the LaunchMe investment-readiness programme, International Tartans successfully applied to Step Up and received a £30,000 loan. With this investment, they will continue to grow their impact locally and internationally, using tartan as a Scottish icon to deliver lasting community benefit.
But wait, what is Step Up?
Step Up is one of our loan products, which has very flexible payment terms. Social enterprises can use a Step Up loan to invest in concepts, products or services they’ve previously piloted or run, which have helped to grow their business.
Let’s break it down:
Firstly, it is a 0% interest loan, which means you repay the same amount you borrowed.
Secondly, the amount you can borrow can be between £5,000 and up to £30,000. If you have fully repaid a loan, you can apply again – up to a lifetime limit of £50,000.
Thirdly, the timeline: YOU decide the frequency and rate of repayments, within the following timeframes:
- if you borrow under £10,000, you have 2 years to repay; or
- for amounts over £10,000, you have 5 years to repay.
In other words, you use your unique knowledge of your enterprise to determine the best way to repay your loan. We understand that every social enterprise journey is different and that you know your business best. We want our products to help you grow, not to hinder your progress with restrictive loan terms.
We aim to make funding decisions within three weeks of an application being made, so it’s a really quick process too.
So how is Step Up helping International Tartans?
International Tartans is using its Step Up investment to accelerate both commercial growth and its capacity to deliver social impact. The investment will be used to:
- Activate key partnerships by purchasing the stock needed to meet demand, including for their collaboration with Tweeds of Scotland
- Commission a range of products in advance from their skilled Makers to ensure timely, high-quality delivery
- Cover the salaries of two key team members who are building and growing International Tartans
Lauren Scott, our Investment Manager said:
“We were really pleased to see International Tartans come through to Step Up from their participation in our LaunchMe investment readiness programme. They are exactly the kind of social enterprise which Step Up is designed to support. International Tartan’s recent shortlisting in the Social Enterprise EDGE awards is further testament to their work and their impact. We can’t wait to see our Step Up loan help them on the next stage in their journey.”
About Step Up, Hazel said:
“I cannot praise Firstport highly enough. Aside from the training and information sessions, the one-to-one support from different team members within the organisation helped us shape an application for Scottish Edge and in doing so, put together a much more business savvy plan for our future. I think what stood out for me most was that the team really care. They’re not just doing their jobs but putting love and hard graft into making sure the organisations they support access the best opportunities possible.”
Follow International Tartan’s latest updates on their website, or on their Facebook, Instagram or X.
Want to know more about Step Up?
Get in touch at info@firstport.org.uk, our investment team will help you take your next big step!