UK registers record of new businesses following “the great resignation”
The UK has registered a record high of new businesses following the Covid-induced “great resignation.”
According to data from accountancy firm Hazlewoods, in the last 12 months 319,000 news businesses were created, most of them e-retailers or delivery firms. The number of retailers in Britain has jumped 15 per cent, from 295,000 to 339,000 while delivery businesses have soared 43 per cent.
“The leap in new businesses created in the UK this year is like nothing we have seen before,” Hazlewoods’ associate partner Rebecca Copping. “Much was made of the rise in entrepreneurialism coming out of the last credit crunch but the pandemic has triggered a far greater increase.
“Online retail and delivery have been major growth industries for a number of years but the past 12 months have supercharged that.”
The pandemic as well as the furlough scheme and the consequent “great resignation” were among the main factors that led to new businesses reaching record highs.
“A lot of people dream of quitting their desk jobs and starting a business making small-batch gin or artisan bread, for example. For some , the pandemic has given them the push they needed to turn those dreams into reality,” Copping added.
“Given the challenges many start-up businesses face, a lot of them may fall by the wayside over the next couple of years, but Covid-19 is likely to end up being a major factor in the creation of the next generation of household name businesses.”