C-Suite Wednesday – The SBA Helps Main Street Flourish

December 18, 2019

By Caity Witucki
Contributing Editor, C-Suite Wednesday

C-Suite Wednesday – The SBA Helps Main Street Flourish

At a recent Senate Committee hearing on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Senator Marco Rubio addressed the SBA’s overall success over the past 66 years. “The SBA provides entrepreneurs with vital access to capital, technical assistance, and entrepreneurial resources – ensuring that American small businesses can start, can scale and can succeed. However, the needs of entrepreneurs and small business owners has changed in the more than 6 decades since the SBA was created back in 1953 under President Eisenhower,” says Rubio. “Today there are over 30 million small businesses in the United States, employing over 60 million Americans. These firms operate in a new economic climate in which small business dynamism is vital and innovation drives growth.”

With the support of the SBA, main street is flourishing. Three recent surveys indicate a healthy economy. They predict a continued focus on the creation of jobs, capital spending, and inventory investment. Furthermore, independent retailers and restaurants report experiencing another record-breaking holiday season. The American Express Small Business Saturday Consumer Insights Survey showed that consumers spent approximately $19.6 billion at small businesses.

According to the 6th annual Principal Financial Well-Being Index SM: Business Owners, small businesses are expecting to continue to grow over the next year. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce reports that one in five small businesses say that they plan to increase hiring efforts over next year, which will keep unemployment rates at record low levels. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national unemployment rate has already fallen to 3.5% during FY 2020.

“During the first two months of fiscal year 2020, SBA loans helped to create 1,055 jobs and retain another 1,484 jobs,” says Steve Bulger, SBA regional administrator. “When small business lending remains steady, we find that job creation and retention numbers tend to be healthy, which bodes well for a strong economy.”

Sources:
Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
U.S. Chamber of Commerce and MetLife’s Small Business Index
CNCB Small Business Confidence Index
NFIB Small Business Optimism Index
Institute for Supply Management’s Factory Activity Index
The American Express Small Business Saturday
Principal Financial Well-Being Index
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
ROI