Its BDC’s Small Business Week in Canada and I couldn’t be prouder to be celebrating with you.
To my readers outside of Canada, please join me in congratulating all my hardworking and resilient peers who employ about 10.7 million Canadians and contribute roughly $1 trillion to Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP).
Small BUT Mighty.
Today, I share some V-E-R-Y interesting findings from a 2019 small business and entrepreneurship study: A Nation of Entrepreneurs conducted by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC).
The Facts
- Canada has more than 1.1 million small and mid-sized businesses (SMEs)
- They account for 90% of all private sector jobs
- 39% of all entrepreneurs are women
- 1 in 430 Canadians started a new business in 2018 an equivalent of 44,700 new businesses
Entrepreneurship rates have increased by 80% for people under 35 since 2014 and tripled among people over 55 since 2000.
Business start-up for newcomers to Canada is increasing at twice the rate of Canadian-born entrepreneurs.
Women businesses are growing 3.1 times faster than the number of male entrepreneurs over the last 40 years.
Canada’s entrepreneurs and business owners are diverse
How diverse?
As diverse as this:
- 3.3 out of 1,000 start-ups are young Canadians (Millennials)
- 1.4 out of 1,000 start-ups are older Canadians (Baby Boomers)
- 3.6 out of 1,000 start-ups are newcomers (immigrants)
- 1.8 out of 1,000 start-ups are women
The trend is quite noticeable with an uptick of young adults, immigrants and women.
What’s Driving Success?
Business owners with higher managerial and technical skills tended to have higher sales, profits and employment growth.
Technical skills like:
- Financial management
- Sales and marketing
- Human resources management
- Operations management
- Strategic planning
Managerial skills like:
- Organizational management
- Leadership and people management
- Innovation
- Networking
Motivated by More Than Money
Canada’s business owners are motivated by more than money. Only 34% do it for the money.
So, if it’s not the money – what then, since about a third of all new businesses fail within five years?
Here are the motivators:
- Independence, autonomy, flexibility -70%
- Passion or self-fulfillment – 53%
- Financial reasons – 34%
- Interesting work and responsibilities – 31%
- Positive contribution to society – 20%
- Opportunity to act on a great idea – 19%
- Family – 4%
- No reason in particular – 3%
Take a Bow
If you are a business owner or entrepreneur, take a bow and accept my heartiest congrats.
Running a business takes grit and grind.
But…
Your continued success greatly depends on what you do next – not what you did yesterday.
Becoming comfortable is a fatal mistake.
Remember Kodak, MySpace or Blockbuster?
These were once giants we thought could never fail.
So, I challenge you to grow, evolve and remain relevant for those you serve or wish to serve.
Happy Small Business Week!
You are MIGHTY!!
