Millions of Jobs at Risk as 370,000 UK SMBs Plan to Cease Trading

With 1 in 5 businesses struggling to handle the increased burden of red tape, is it time for further support for the UK’s small businesses?

Over 1.8 million UK jobs are at risk as 370,000 small businesses plan to cease trading over the next five years, according to a survey commissioned by a newly introduced business for sale marketplace, Bizdaq.

The research, conducted by Opinium, found that over 370,000 small businesses are planning to cease trading in the next five years, with these businesses employing 4.85 employees on average. A further 424,000 business owners plan to exit their business by selling within the next five years; selling being a method which is far more likely to protect jobs.

The survey found that business owners in London are most likely to be thinking about an exit within the next five years. 43% of London small business owners are considering an exit, whilst those in the East of England are happiest running their businesses, with only 11% of owners considering exiting.

Interestingly, the revenue of businesses didn’t have an impact on whether an owner was planning to leave – the East of England had both the lowest exit rate and the lowest average revenue, whilst the East Midlands – which had the highest average revenue – was second only to London for business owners looking to exit.

Sean Mallon, CEO of Bizdaq, said: “It is astonishing, given the government’s rhetoric around job creation, that little is being done to preserve the number of jobs at risk within Britain’s small businesses. If the government were to make leaving a business easier and promote this as the “norm,” then hard working small business owners could capitalise on their efforts and we could retain over 1.8m jobs – it’s a win-win situation.”

(Source: www.mybizdaq.com)