Will your Business show Endurance?
UK Industrial Trends and Insights from 6 years of data
Which sector has shown the highest survivability in the current global economic uncertainties? And which one is the one who’s suffering the most?
In this article, you are going to learn about the business endurance and resilience of entrepreneurial ventures in the UK and trying to answer the question: “Is the safety of my business backed up by current statistics and data?“
Not so long ago, I obtained a dataset from the UK Office of National Statistics containing information about Births and Deaths of Businesses in the UK and I gave myself a chance to run some analysis.
Contents
- Structure of the Dataset
- Growth Rate of Business Births and Deaths Year-on-Year
- Births vs. Deaths – Comparative Analysis of Businesses Endurance in the UK
- Net Growth (Births – Deaths) Analysis by Industry for UK Businesses
- Best Performing Industries
- Final Considerations
1.Structure of the Dataset
Before jumping into the analysis, it is important to understand the type of dataset we are looking at.
Definition of Births and Deaths
With quite an important definition throughout the article, we will refer to Births as ‘Creations’ e Deaths as ‘Closures’ of business.
Strictly, births and deaths on ventures are counted only when these enterprises are added to, and removed from, the IDBR (Inter-Departmental Business Register), respectively.
Timescale
The data contains values from Q1 2017 to Q3 2023. Results are grouped by Quarters, providing a maximum of 26 clusters in total in a 6-year lifespan.
Note: please consider that in some representations, data was not made available for the full horizon, hence, charts might report a smaller time frame.
Geography Layers
There are four different layers of Geographical areas:
- The entire United Kingdom. Results for this layer contain the sum of all Business Births and Deaths in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland plus one “Unspecified area” to cope with business with the registration at the same address.
- Great Britain. This refers to businesses registered and retired in England, Scotland, and Wales.
- Country Specific. This layer has information belonging to England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
- Regional Level. This layer has information belonging to the following regions:
- North East
- North West
- Yorkshire and The Humber
- East Midlands
- West Midlands
- East
- London
- South East
- South West
Industry Segments
Different segments have been created by leveraging the SIC07 letters classification.
If you didn’t know, SIC07 is the current Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) used in classifying business establishments and other statistical units by the economic activity they are engaged in.
Here is the table used for this statistic:
| Description | SIC07 section letter |
| Agriculture, forestry, and fishing | A |
| Production | BCDE |
| Construction | F |
| Motor trades | G45 |
| Wholesale | G46 |
| Retail | G47 |
| Transportation and storage | H |
| Accommodation and food services | I |
| Information and communication | J |
| Finance and insurance | K |
| Real estate | L |
| Professional, scientific, and technical activities | M |
| Business administration and support services | N |
| Education | P |
| Health and social care | Q |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation and other services | RS |
2. Growth Rate of Business Births and Deaths Year-on-Year
In this Section we are going to focus on Births and Deaths Growth Rate Y-O-Y.
Overall Growth Rate of Business Births and Deaths Year-on-Year in the UK
Here is a line chart showing the percentage change in business births and deaths from one quarter to the next with no distinction across regions and industries.
Understanding the Formula Used
Before jumping to the results, it is important to understand what has been plotted and how to read it.
The chart above represents the year-on-year percentage growth of Uk Businesses and has been plotted using this formula:
This formula gives the percentage change in a value (in this case, births or deaths) from one quarter to the same period in the following or quarter.
When it comes to the interpretations of the results, here is what you need to know:
Business Births:
- Downward Trend (Negative Growth Rate):
- Bad: This indicates that fewer businesses are being established compared to the previous quarter. A consistent downward trend in business births can be a sign of unfavorable economic conditions of all sorts.
- Upward Trend (Positive Growth Rate):
- Good: An increase in business births suggests a favorable economic environment, increased investor and entrepreneur confidence, and potentially new opportunities or market gaps that new businesses are aiming to fill.
- Downward Trend (Negative Growth Rate):
Business Deaths:
- Downward Trend (Negative Growth Rate):
- Good: This means fewer businesses are closing or failing compared to the previous year. A consistent decrease in business deaths can indicate a stable or growing economy, effective business practices, or successful government policies aiding businesses.
- Upward Trend (Positive Growth Rate):
- Bad: An increase in business deaths indicates that more businesses are closing or failing compared to the previous year. This can be due to economic downturns, increased competition, regulatory challenges, or other external factors negatively affecting businesses.
- Bad: An increase in business deaths indicates that more businesses are closing or failing compared to the previous year. This can be due to economic downturns, increased competition, regulatory challenges, or other external factors negatively affecting businesses.
- Downward Trend (Negative Growth Rate):
So Summarizing:
- For Births: An upward trend is generally good, while a downward trend can be concerning.
- For Deaths: A downward trend is typically a positive sign, whereas an upward trend can be alarming.
General Observations
- Volatility in Growth Rates: Both the births and deaths growth rates demonstrate considerable volatility across the years. This suggests a dynamic business environment, with periods of high entrepreneurial activity and periods where businesses face challenges.
Pre-Covid Period (Q3 2019 - Q4 2019)
- Both business births and deaths growth rates were trending downward.
- Births saw a sharp drop in growth rate, moving from a positive to a negative value, indicating a decline in the number of new businesses being established compared to the previous year.
- Simultaneously, deaths’ growth rate also showed a decrease, which is a positive sign as it means fewer businesses were ceasing operations compared to the previous year.
Early 2020 (COVID-19 Outbreak):
- Both business births and deaths growth rates were trending downward.
- Births saw a sharp drop in growth rate, moving from a positive to a negative value, indicating a decline in the number of new businesses being established compared to the previous year.
- Simultaneously, deaths’ growth rate also showed a decrease, which is a positive sign as it means fewer businesses were ceasing operations compared to the previous year.
2021 (Covid Aftermath on UK Businesses)
- Q1 & Q2 2021: The positive trend for business births continued into 2021, with the growth rate rising significantly. This indicates a strong rebound in new businesses being established compared to the previous year. However, the business deaths growth rate also increased, suggesting that while new businesses were emerging, many existing businesses were still struggling.
- Q3 & Q4 2021: By the end of 2021, both growth rates start to converge. The growth rate for business births begins to decline, while the growth rate for business deaths continues its downward trend but at a slower pace.
2022 and Onwards
Start of the Period (Q1 2022):
- The growth rate of business births is positive but shows a declining trend, suggesting that while new businesses are being formed, their rate of formation is slowing down compared to the previous year.
- The growth rate for business deaths is also positive but decreasing, indicating a reduction in the number of businesses ceasing operations compared to the previous year.
Continued Trends (Q2 2022 to Q2 2023):
- The growth rate for business births continues to decline through 2022 and into 2023, trending towards negative values. This can suggest a constant negative trend in the number of new businesses being formed.
- The growth rate for business deaths, declines from Q1 2022 and indicates that lessbusinesses are ceasing operations compared to the previous year.
Understanding and Potential Causes for the 2022-2023 behaviour
- Economic Aftermath of COVID-19: While the immediate impacts of the pandemic were felt in 2020 and 2021, its economic repercussions can extend beyond those years. Supply chain disruptions, changes in consumer behavior, and shifts in global trade dynamics can all lead to longer-term challenges for businesses.
- High Interest Rates & Inflation: This disastrous duo created havoc amongst consumers and consequently endangering businesses. Inflation has reduced customers’ purchasing power leading to reduced demand for good and non essential services.
Whilst some Businesses were capable of facing this shrinkage, some of them had nothing to do but closing their doors. - Ukrainian War and Global Economic Conditions: The broader global economic environment also played a big role influencing business births and deaths. As of today this is still a major issue for many ventures.
- Customers Switching to Digital: The pandemic accelerated structural changes in the customer’s behaviors. Many business unable to keep up with digital transformation found themself behind in the competition with not enough resource to boost the change.
On the other side, new opportunities emerged for new business leveraging remote working and digital platforms. - Government Policies: The removal of support measures (like grants, loans, or tax breaks) influenced business recovery. For instance, the end of pandemic-related support measures might lead to challenges for some businesses.
Brexit is still counting as a common challenge for ventures, making them unable to reach their full potential, especially due to the various trade barriers difficulties. - Sector-Specific Challenges: We all know what travel and tourism industry faced. With challenges and international travel restrictions, many direct and indirect business had no other chance to stop their activity.
Growth Rates of Business Births and Deaths by Country
With very little surprise we can see that the same pattern is present in each country: England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
None of them seemed able to cope with the “Deadly Period” of the Covid Outbreak in 2020, and the consequent aftermath in the most recent period of mid-2022 to mid-2023.
However, in 3 out of 4 Nations, there is an upward trend for business Births which hopefully will gain momentum. regional insights were omitted on purpose, as they share similar patterns.
Growth Rates for Business Births and Deaths by Industry
In this section, we deep dive into the juicy part of the analysis which will give us more information specifically on each industry sector.
The results have produced different outcomes and in the end confirming what has been officially reported by the media.
I reported and focus on three different phases of the dataset to better highlight business endurance and resilience:
- COVID-19 Period (Q1 2020 to Q4 2020)
- Post-COVID-19 Period (Q1 2021 to Q4 2021)
- Recent Period (Q1 2022 to Q2 2023)
Having 16 different categories, I found it useful to group them in 4 business groups, with no particular order:
Business Group 1
1. Agriculture:
- COVID-19 Period: A significant decline in business deaths, indicating resilience with increasing births of new Businesses.
- Post-COVID-19: Sharp increase deaths and decline in births.
- Recent Period: Both births and deaths show a downward trend.
2. Production:
- COVID-19 Period: Fall and recovery for both Births and Deaths.
- Post-COVID-19: Increase in Deaths and births continued to decline throughout the whole year.
- Recent Period: Decline in deaths and rise in births.
3. Construction:
- COVID-19 Period: Sharp decline in deaths and a slight decrease in births.
- Post-COVID-19: A strong rebound in deaths, indicating recovery.
- Recent Period: Continued decline in births but also decline in deaths.
4. Motor Trades:
- COVID-19 Period: A decline in deaths and stable births.
- Post-COVID-19: A decrease in both births and deaths.
- Recent Period: Stability in births with a decline in deaths.
Business Group 2
1. Wholesale:
- COVID-19 Period: Decline in deaths with stable births.
- Post-COVID-19: Decrease in in births and increase in deaths.
- Recent Period: Decline in deaths and stable in births.
2. Retail:
- COVID-19 Period: A decline in deaths but a rise in births.
- Post-COVID-19: Fall in births and surge in deaths.
- Recent Period: births stabilized and deaths sharply declined.
3. Transport & Storage:
- COVID-19 Period: Stable deaths with a slight increase in births.
- Post-COVID-19: Stable births with a rise in deaths.
- Recent Period: Decline in births and deaths.
4. Accommodation & Food Services:
- COVID-19 Period: Sharp decline in deaths with a rise in births.
- Post-COVID-19: A rebound in deaths, but births continued to rise.
- Recent Period: Both births and deaths declined.
Business Group 3
1. Information & Communication:
- COVID-19 Period: Deaths overall with an upward trend and a growth trend in births.
- Post-COVID-19: Reduction in deaths, but births stayed stable.
- Recent Period: Reduction in deaths with a small decline in births.
2. Financial & Insurance:
- COVID-19 Period: Decline and rebound in births. Same for deaths.
- Post-COVID-19: Decline in both births and deaths.
- Recent Period: Stability in births with a decline in deaths.
3. Real Estate:
- COVID-19 Period: Decline in deaths with a rise in births.
- Post-COVID-19: Decline in births with a rise in deaths.
- Recent Period: Stable in births and stable decline in deaths
4. Professional, Scientific & Technical:
- COVID-19 Period: Decline and rebound in births. Same for deaths.
- Post-COVID-19: Second half with an increase in births and rise in deaths.
- Recent Period: Continued stability in births and decline in deaths.
Business Group 4
1. Business Administration & Support Services:
- COVID-19 Period: Stability in deaths with a decline in births.
- Post-COVID-19: Decline in births with a rise in deaths.
- Recent Period: Continued stability in births and deaths.
2. Education:
- COVID-19 Period: Stability in both births and deaths.
- Post-COVID-19: Balanced in births and deaths.
- Recent Period: Both births and deaths declined.
3. Health and Social Care:
- COVID-19 Period: Rise in births with a decline in deaths.
- Post-COVID-19: Continued rise in births with stable deaths.
- Recent Period: Stability in both births and deaths.
4. Arts, Entertainment, Recreation & Other Services:
- COVID-19 Period: Decline in deaths with a rise in births.
- Post-COVID-19: Stability in births with a decline in deaths.
- Recent Period: Both births and deaths declined.
3. Births vs. Deaths - Comparative Analysis of Businesses Endurance in the UK
Another important metric I want to propose is correlated to the comparative analysis of births vs deaths of Businesses in each UK country.
The idea of this metric should give an understanding of what happened throughout the years. The economies and Policies of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have played a different role in each and every community with direct and indirect consequences on business ventures’ survivability.
Even in this case, special attention has been given to the resilience demonstrated in the Covid and Post covid Period (2020 to 2023)
Results Interpretation
England:
- Births: England has the highest number of business births across the four countries, reflecting its larger population and economy. There’s a noticeable decline in business births around 2020, which then starts recovering from Q1 2021 onwards.
- Deaths: Business deaths also exhibit a rise around late 2021 and beginning of 2022. Subsequently, Deaths have been fluctuating in the recent period.
- Possible Causes: The dip in 2020 can be attributed to the impact of COVID-19, causing economic disruptions. The recovery post-2020 may reflect the easing of lockdown measures and the introduction of economic stimulus packages. Other factors influencing the business environment in England include Brexit implications, war in Ukraine and other economic aspects like interest rate policies.
Scotland:
- Births: Scotland shows a decline in business births around 2020, followed by a recovery in 2021. The recovery seems slower than England.
- Deaths: There’s an uptick in business deaths in 2020. The trends seems persisting also in the following period form 2022 onwards.
- Possible Causes: Similar to England, COVID-19 has had a substantial impact on Scotland’s business environment. However, the slower recovery might be influenced by Scotland’s specific industrial makeup, regional economic policies, and its discussions around independence.
Wales:
- Births: Wales has a consistent pattern of business births, with a slight dip in 2020, followed by a steady recovery.
- Deaths: Business deaths seems to be balanced with births from 2021 onwards.
- Possible Causes: The impact of COVID-19 is evident in 2020. The Welsh government’s specific policies and economic support measures might have influenced the recovery rate.
Northern Ireland:
- Births: Business births in Northern Ireland seem less affected in 2020 compared to other countries. However, there’s a noticeable decline post Q2-2022.
- Deaths: Business deaths rise around Q2-2022 and remain elevated.
- Possible Causes: Northern Ireland has a unique position due to the Brexit deal, which might have influenced its business environment differently than the rest of the UK.
While COVID-19 has had an impact, the post-2020 decline in births and sustained high deaths might be influenced by uncertainties related to its position post-Brexit, as well as regional economic challenges.
General Observations:
- COVID-19 Impact: All countries show a dip in business births and a rise in deaths around 2020, reflecting the immediate impact of the pandemic and associated lockdown measures.
- Recovery: Post-2020, there’s a general trend of recovery in business births and a decline in deaths, indicating economic resilience and possibly the effects of government interventions and stimulus packages.
- Brexit: The implications of Brexit might also have influenced business dynamics, especially in regions like Northern Ireland.
- Economic Conditions: Interest rates, inflation, and other macroeconomic factors would play a role in influencing the business environment. However, specific data on these parameters would be required to draw more definitive conclusions.
4. Net Growth Analysis by Industry for UK Businesses
Before jumping to the result a couple of words to understand this metric.
The idea is to plot out the net growth (Births – Deaths) for each industry to highlight which sector demonstrated more Business Endurance and Resilience.
Positive values (more Births than Deaths) are represented in Green, whilst negative (Deaths exceeding Births) are represented in red.
Industries have been grouped without a specific logic. Results have been clustered in four different business groups.
Business Group 1 - Net Growth
1. Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing:
- This industry faced challenges between Q1 2017 and Q4 2019 with a net decline in growth. Even though you can see a small recovery in mid-2020 to early 2021, the industry is badly suffering.
2. Production:
- Production experienced a growth until Q1 2021 followed by a decline since that time. There’s a noticeable uptrend, suggesting a possible recovery and a positive market response in Q2 2023.
3. Construction:
- Construction saw considerable growth from Q1 2017 to Q1 2022. However, it showed a decline in the most recent periods following Q1 2022 for the rest of 2022. Projections for late 2023 seem promising.
4. Motor Trades:
- Stable growth in number until Q4 2021. Downward trend ever since with a promising projection for 2023.
Business Group 2 - Net Growth
1. Wholesale:
- The Wholesale industry faced significant challenges till Q4 2019, showing overall negative net growth. From Q1 2020, there is a clear uptrend, indicating potential market recovery and adaptability of businesses in this sector that ended up in Q4 2021. Since that moment the sector is in decline.
2. Retail:
- Retail, contrary to Wholesale, had a positive overall trend till Q4 2021. However, from Q1 2022 onwards, the industry has shown consistent negative net growth, suggesting a contraction in opportunities.
3. Transportation and Storage:
- This industry has witnessed fluctuations over the years. Recent quarters indicate some challenges, suggesting the need for adaptability in this sector.
4. Accommodation and Food Services:
- This sector experienced significant growth, especially between Q1 2019 and Q4 2019. There’s a noticeable expansion starting from Q2 2020, terminating in Q2 2022. The sector has been suffering in recent quarters.
Business Group 3 - Net Growth
1. Information and Communication:
- This industry showed consistent positive growth till Q3 2019. The industry has shown consistent negative net growth since then.
2. Finance and Insurance:
- The industry is facing a split trend with later periods showing positive net growth and recent periods facing negative net growth.
3. Real Estate:
- Real Estate witnessed overall positive net growth throughout the whole period analyzed. The industry rebounded has slightly suffered just in two quarters Q3 and Q4 2022. A positive trend indicates a quick recovery since then.
4. Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities:
- This sector showed fluctuations with uncertainties since Q4 2019. Negative Growth seems to be the most characteristic pattern
Business Group 4 - Net Growth
1. Business Administration and Support Services:
- The industry experienced challenges throughout the whole period. A slight recovery is shown in the latest quarter.
2. Education*:
- The Education sector faces stable positive growth in the period analyzed except for a sharp decline in Q2 2017.
3. Health and Social Care:
- A negative trend in the early stages but this sector witnessed consistent positive growth over the years, indicating a robust market presence and potential resilience in the face of challenges.
4. Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, and Other Services:
- The industry seems to face challenges in the latest periods after decent expansion in the years previous 2022.
5. Best Performing Industries
In the final section, I wanted to answer two questions:
- Which industry counts the biggest net growth in the entire time window?
- Which industry demonstrated more endurance and resilience, showing positive net growth in the last 6 years and in the last year, simultaneously ?
The Industries with the highest Net Growth in the last 6 years
Under the Column “Net Growth” you can see that the leading industry is the Construction Industry. This sector overall has seen the highest positive difference between growth and deaths of business in the whole United Kingdom with a whopping 47+ thousand new ventures registered.
This is followed by the Retail sector and the Real Estate Sector with around 31K and almost 18K respectively.
At the bottom of the list, we can see Information and Communication and Professional, Scientific, and Technical Activities counting for more than 84 thousand deaths in total.
The last line represents the overall total of Net Growth Total with almost 30 thousand new business ventures registered.
The Businesses with more Endurance and Resilience
A little bit harder to spot, the winner (or I should say the winners) are those industries with the positive number of net growth throughout the whole 6-year span who also kept a positive trend in the last year (Q2 2022-Q3 2023), demonstrating endurance and resilience in the ongoing economic, pandemic, and global challenges.
Looking at the very last column on the right of the table (Net Growth Q2 2022 – Q2 2023) we can see that Real Estate and Education are the only ones who kept a positive number in both columns (Both Net Growth and Net Growth in the last year are positive).
To make it easier for you to read, let’s visualize it in the following chart.
As you can see, Real Estate (third on the left) and Education (in the middle) are the only ones with both columns in green.
Results for the other industries show different mixed outcomes.
A dark green color has been used to visualize a positive net growth over the 6-year span, whilst a dark red color shows a negative net growth.
The same logic has been applied to visualize Q2-2022 to Q3 2023 results, (light green positive, light red negative).
Considerations on Overall Net Growth Results
Construction, Retail, and Real Estate having the highest net growth:
- Construction:
- Housing shortages or a push for infrastructural projects could have spurred growth in this sector. Post-pandemic recovery might have also led to a surge in construction projects that were previously halted or delayed.
- Low interest rates could have also boosted construction and similar type of business like refurbishing & renovations ventures during the housing boom, encouraging investments in real estate and infrastructure.
- Retail:
- The shift to online shopping might have allowed new entrants to easily establish retail businesses, particularly as consumers’ habits changed during the pandemic.
- Post-lockdown periods often see a burst of retail activity, known as “revenge shopping”, where consumers spend more after periods of restrictions.
- Real Estate:
- Real estate often becomes an attractive investment during uncertain economic times as it’s seen as tangible and stable.
- Furthermore, the “work from home” culture has led many individuals to reconsider their living situations, prompting moves, home purchases, and investments in real estate.
- The housing boom from May 2020 to March 2022 had certainly contributed to this effect.
Information and Communication and Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities having the lowest net growth:
- Information and Communication:
- While the tech sector as a whole has seen growth, it’s also highly competitive. New startups emerge rapidly but also face steep competition, leading to a high churn rate.
- The rapid pace of technological change means businesses that fail to adapt can quickly become obsolete.
- Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities:
- These industries require a high level of expertise and capital. While they have the potential for high returns, the barriers to entry and risks are also significant.
- The nature of consultancy and technical services is project-based, which means companies can face periods of downtime between contracts, leading to potential closures.
Consideration on Net Growth Results From Q2 2022 to Q2 2023
Real Estate and Education showing positive growth in both overall net growth and in the period Q2 2022 – Q2 2023:
- Real Estate:
- Work-from-Home Impact: With the onset of the pandemic, many companies adopted remote work policies. This led to a lot of people moving out of cities or looking for bigger homes, which might have spurred the demand in real estate.
- Investment Diversification: Given the economic uncertainties, some investors might diversify their portfolios by investing more in tangible assets like real estate, viewing it as a stable and long-term investment.
- Rental Market Strength: Surging rents have contributed to keeping this sector profitable and healthy even in the most recent times when banks have increased the mortgage rates.
- Education:
Digital Transformation: The shift to online education, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, has opened up opportunities for edutech startups and online course creators. With the rise of online courses, institutions can cater to a global audience, significantly expanding their market reach.
- Recession Resilience: Typically, during economic downturns, there’s a trend where individuals opt to enhance their skills or go back to school, leading to a surge in demand for educational services.
Agriculture, Forestry, Information and Communication, and Fishing, Professional Scientific, and Technical Activities showing the highest negative growth in the period Q2 2022 – Q2 2023
Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing:
- Climate Change and Weather Events: Unpredictable weather patterns and extreme events can drastically affect agricultural yields and fish stocks.
- Economic Pressures: High capital costs, fluctuating commodity prices, and thin margins can make these businesses financially vulnerable.
- Lack of Workforce: adding this to the high capital cost, less and less young entrepreneurs are oriented towards this type of jobs.
Information and Communication:
- Rapid Technological Change: Companies that fail to adapt quickly to technological advancements can find themselves outpaced by competitors.
- High Competition: The barrier to entry in many tech fields can be low, leading to market saturation and fierce competition.
- Short Product Life Cycles: Products in the tech industry can become obsolete quickly.
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Activities:
- High Expertise and Capital required: These industries require a high level of expertise and capital. While they have the potential for high returns, the barriers to entry and risks are also significant.
- Global Outsourcing: Some services, especially in the IT and technical domains, can be outsourced to regions with lower labor costs.
A Special Mention
It is important to note that the only business that looks to benefit from the current situation is indeed the health and social care sector.
We can justify this result to the fact that many businesses have been created to cope with the increasing demand of healthcare-related services after the Covid-19 outbreak.
A Gloomy Outlook from the Total Column
The very last columns on the chart are referring to the overall results of all industries. Whilst in the 6 years life span approximately 30 thousand businesses have been created, around 71 thousand ventures have closed their doors in the last year only, leaving us a with dramatic outlook.
Final Considerations
Analyzing the dataset has shown various aspects of UK Business Resilience and Endurance as well as characterizing different reactiveness of business ventures based on the type of industry and sector.
The growth rate Trend of Business Births and Deaths on a Y-o-Y basis has shown a recent downward trend for both new incorporation and failures (fewer Births but also fewer Deaths), with a small but uprising promising trend for births in Q2 2023.
Country and Industry specifics have also shown a similar pattern, sharing the common downs of the Covid19 outbreak + Aftermath.
Some of them have coped better than others with the additional challenging situation that arose in recent years with higher Interest Rates, Brexit, and the Ukranian war.
The Births vs Deaths analysis has shown more or less the same results in England, Scotland Wales, and NI. Northern Ireland seems to suffer the most from the data we have on hand.
A different story is shown by the net growth analysis (Births – Deaths) by industry.
Demonstrating Endurance and Resilience, we have Real Estate e Education Businesses among the winners. They have thrived and suffered very little compared to Agriculture, Forestry, Information and Communication, and Fishing, Professional Scientific, and Technical Activities for which important considerations are required.
The health and social care sector seems to be the most promising choice for new entrepreneurship solutions for the current condition, with the caveat of considering how long the aftermath of Covid-19 will boost this industry.
Finally, A glance at the Overall UK shows a net, positive 30 thousand new businesses created in the last 6 years but with a whopping 70 thousand figure of closed business in the period Q2 2022 to Q3 2023 which sounds quite concerning.
I hope you have enjoyed the content of this article and I hope you have found the answers you were looking for.
Now, let me know your position, In which sector do you want to create your new business venture? Do you see any upcoming trends that haven’t been highlighted yet by the data? Have the result shown met your previsions?
Let me know in the comment!
