An extended four-page Executive Summary is available as a free download (pdf format) by clicking here.
The complete report can be downloaded as a .pdf file for £30. Click here for details.
(Please note - on clicking on the above link, you will be taken to the shop page on the Forum of Private Business' website, from where you can purchase the report directly.)
The SBRT survey is one of the largest regular surveys on smaller business in the UK. It provides evidence on key
trends in business performance based on a random sample of companies that were surveyed during the second
quarter of 2006.
The main points of the report are summarised as follows:
Survey sample
Just over 500 small and medium-sized businesses from across the UK took part in this survey. Two-thirds of these we classify as micro businesses, employing fewer than 10 people. About 30% are small businesses that employ between 10 and 50 people, and the rest are medium-sized businesses.
Growth headlines
The trading environment remains relatively stable. However, there is a delicate upturn recorded in the three performance indicators of sales, employment and investment.
For the micro businesses, while better than in the previous quarter, sales are flat and employment remains negative. Investment, however, is up. For the small businesses, sales are down slightly, although employment and investment are up.
Future growth
Expectation of future performance is stable. A growth in sales is anticipated in the micro business category in Q3 2006, but little, if any, growth in employment. In the small business category, sales are expected to dip slightly, with no change to employment, but a rise in investment.
Main barriers to growth
The barriers to business growth are consistently cited as taxation, employment regulations, business rates
and late payment. For the micro businesses, taxation is clearly the most pressing concern. For the small businesses, it is employment regulations.
Female entrepreneurs
This survey reports that female-led businesses have performed better in this quarter, matched by an increase in the proportion of female entrepreneurs trading across borders.
Cross border trade
Approximately a third of all businesses trade across borders. By size, there are approximately 30% of micro businesses, 40% of small businesses and 50% of medium-sized businesses that trade across borders. This survey confirms the evidence that those businesses that trade overseas tend to perform better in terms of sales than those that only trade within the UK.
Access to finance
The theme for this quarter was access to finance for the smaller business. The supply of finance does not seem to be a problem, with 70% of businesses reporting that they had been able to access additional finance in recent years.
Half of those that had required additional finance achieved this by means of an overdraft, while a further 44% did so through a loan arrangement. Generally speaking, the micro businesses seek an overdraft facility, while the small businesses look for a loan.The small businesses appear to be able to negotiate better rates of interest when seeking additional finance compared to the micro businesses.
An extended four-page Executive Summary is available as a free download (pdf format) by clicking here.
The complete report can be downloaded as a .pdf file for £30. Click here for details.
(Please note - on clicking on the above link, you will be taken to the shop page on the Forum of Private Business' website, from where you can purchase the report directly.) |
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