Small Business Facts

Small businesses play a special role in innovation. In 2018, 37% of high-tech workers worked for small businesses. According to the Census Bureau’s data series, Innovation Measurement Initiative, the bulk of STEM-related researchers …

About two-thirds of business owners start their business from scratch, while less than a quarter of owners purchased the business they own. The starting method for small businesses tends to be relatively stable over time but differs based…

Business ownership is diverse, but women, African Americans, and Hispanics tend to own more non-employer firms and less employer firms. Additionally, younger owners tend to own non-employer firms. With the Census Bureau’s new data series,…

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted businesses that typically require more person to person contact.  Recovery rates and changes in the operating capacity of small businesses since the start of the pandemic have also…

The Office of Advocacy’s Small Business Economic Bulletin for December examines how small businesses have been faring during the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall self-employment levels have been relatively steady, but income changes from small…

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted metropolitan areas, which have seen a higher rate of small business closures than non-metropolitan areas. However, in recent weeks, the New York City metropolitan area has reopened…

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on business owners have varied across demographic groups.  The decline in business activity among Black owners has been nearly three times the decline among other owners.  Read “Small Business Facts:…

In May 2020, employment in leisure and hospitality was down 41 percent relative to May 2019, compared to declines ranging from 2 to 18 percent in other areas. The largest category of businesses within leisure and hospitality is food…

Since a declaration of emergency for COVID-19 was issued on March 13, 2020, total private employment dropped by over 15 percent. Small businesses employers bore the brunt of the job loss, with a decline of more than 17 percent. Read “Small…

The Office of Advocacy’s Small Business Economic Bulletin for April 2020 charts pre-pandemic trends for the small business economy through 2019. At that point in time, the number of small businesses was increasing, and small businesses…