The world is moving at a faster pace today and we all need to find ways to move with it. For small businesses this means having an understanding of the current business landscape. The 2013 U.S. Census revealed that the U.S. is home to more than 28 million small businesses. Yes, that is not a typo; 28 million. That number seems a bit less startling when you note the fact that approximately 400,000 new small businesses are started each month and 52% of these are home-based. The turnover for small businesses is also high. In fact 5 out of 10 new firms will not make it to their fifth birthday.
The best way to prepare for what is ahead, is to do your best to understand where we are at today. The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an amazing resource dedicated to helping small businesses with everything from acquiring funding to mentorship. Earlier this month the SBA released its’ “Small Business Bulletin” which, profiles the important details of the state of small businesses in the United States.
Here are the 8 most surprising facts about startups and small businesses:
- Small businesses continue to add more new net jobs than large businesses.
- Businesses with less than 50 employees added up to 39% of net new jobs in the first three quarters of 2014.
- New business establishment openings are outpacing business establishment closings. Q3 of 2013 through 2014 saw quarterly establishment openings of more than 375,000 while closings during that same period were all below 375,000.
- Small businesses, between 250-499 employees, export value improved by 4.5% between 2012-2013. Compare this to the growth of U.S. exports during the same period which was a mere 1.4%.
- The first quarter in 2015 saw the most venture capital raised in a Q1 since 2000. Traditionally the first quarter is a slow time for venture capital. Q1 2015 investments totaled $13.4 Billion.
- The top five VC Deals in Q1 2015 were as follows: Uber $1 Billion, SpaceX just under $1 Billion, Lyft $530 Million, Pinterest $367 Million, SoFi $213 Million.
- Q1 2015 became the fifth straight quarter to see VC investments totaling more than $10 Billion.
- Q1 2015 also saw the lowest number of seed-stage deals since reporting on this began in 1996. Investors overlooked more early-stage startups in lieu of making investments into more mature small businesses.
To see the full report click HERE.
