Surveys show entrepreneurial interest

One in four people across England are currently running or considering starting their own business, according to a report by the Small Business Service (SBS), an agency of the DTI.

The SBS Household Survey of Entrepreneurship is a biennial survey of adults in England, and is a large-scale attempt to explore attitudes towards business and find out how many people are involved in entrepreneurial activities.

It also aims to explore and understand what motivates people to start their own business, and questions what factors contribute to the success or failure of their venture.

The survey revealed that 93 per cent of people admire entrepreneurs, and 64 per cent would encourage their friends or relatives to start their own enterprise. Most people (87 per cent) surveyed also thought that entrepreneurs who failed in their first business should be given the chance to start again.

Just over 10,000 people were surveyed including people who were already running their own business (13 per cent); those thinking of starting one (11 per cent) and those not interested in striking out on their own (76 per cent).

Key findings

Key findings of the survey included:

• Men are twice as likely as women to be involved in entrepreneurial activity or to be thinking about it.
  
• Ethnic minority groups are more likely to be considering starting a business but there are low levels of actual entrepreneurial activity amongst the black population.
  
• Regionally there is a north-south divide, with a higher percentage of 'doers' in London, the South West, East of England (all 15 per cent), and the South East (14 per cent), than in the North West (11 per cent), the West Midlands (10 per cent) and the North East (9 per cent). There is a similar pattern in the proportion of those considering starting a business, with most 'thinkers' in London (15 per cent) and least in the North East (7 per cent).

Needs, concerns and barriers

The SBS also recently published a second survey, its annual Small Business Survey for 2003. The survey aims to measure the needs of small business, assess their main concerns and looks at the barriers which prevent them from reaching their potential. The survey, which polled over 8,000 small businesses at the end of last year, highlights the dominant characteristics of small businesses in the UK, the attitudes of business owners and managers to issues such as finance, late payment and dealings with Government.

Key findings include:

• The biggest obstacle to businesses' success is competition.
  
• 40 per cent of businesses with employees introduced a new product or service in the last year.
  
• 64% of new businesses sought advice while starting up their business
  
• For businesses that do not want to grow, the most popular reason why not, is that they are happy at their present size.