Main Street Monday — 33% Thought About Starting a Small Business Last Year

August 6, 2018

By Bob Coleman
Editor, Main Street Monday

Main Street Monday — 33% Thought About Starting a Small Business Last Year

According to the SBA, small businesses have been growing steadily in the number of jobs, income, firms and new start-ups for the past year.
Based on findings from a recent survey of aspiring small business owners released by LendingTree, nearly one-third of 3,387 survey participants have thought about starting a business in the past year.

Almost one-half of these potential entrepreneurs have not taken action to launch a business. The primary reason is due to securing sufficient start-up capital.

Financing options
When considering financing options for a start-up, about one-third of survey participants see an SBA loan as the most popular choice.
Both Millennials (24%) and Gen X’rs (25%) considered an SBA loan as their best financing option.

Approximately 15 percent are considering non-SBA loans. Even smaller percentages are looking at cash or retirement savings, home equity or even credit cards to finance their ventures.
Just under one-half of survey participants admit not taking any action steps to start their business or seeking financing options.

Twenty percent of future small business owners would be willing to forego an income, 16 percent are unwilling to take a pay cut. Up to 23 percent of participants were not willing to take on personal debt to start up a business. 19 percent were willing to risk $25,000 or more.

According to the survey, motivating factors for starting a new business include finding a deeper life purpose (25%) and not reporting to a boss (14%). Escaping the 9-to-5 routine or career advancement are other motivating factors.

To view the full report, visit:
https://www.lendingtree.com/business/small/small-business-survey-results-june-2018/