UK’s mid-sized firms fare better than Germany’s
Mid-sized companies in the UK have weathered the global downturn better than those in the renowned German Mittelstand, according to new figures released today.
The snapshot of the European mid-market, released by accountancy firm BDO, shows that the €1.92 trillion (£1.4 trillion) turnover of the UK’s mid-sized firms now exceeds that of the German Mittelstand’s €1.78 trillion turnover. BDO defined the mid-market as firms with turnover between £10m and £300m annually.
The report showed that since 2009 the Mittelstand has grown by 12 per cent compared to the mid-market’s 33 per cent. The UK has also overtaken Germany for the number of people employed in their respective mid-markets, with the UK employing 9.3m people, compared to Germany’s 9.2m.
Despite faring better through the global recession than other European financial centres, the Mittelstand – made up of around 43,500 firms – is facing fierce competition from elsewhere on the continent.
Simon Michaels, managing partner at BDO, said: “This is a massive achievement … Germany has always invested in its mid-market; it has policies directly aimed at the Mittelstand and culturally the Mittelstand stands as the economic backbone of the nation.”