Page 21 - The South China Business Journal
P. 21
ll Business Owners Are
Working Harder
Over the last five years, one key finding stands out: in
a post-pandemic world with major labor shortages,
small business owners report working longer hours
than they used to.
In fact, half (50%) of small business owners say they
are working more hours now than they were a year
ago. This question was first asked in the inaugural SBI
(Q2 2017). Five years ago, 30% said they were working
more hours. This equates to a very significant
20-percentage point increase in the share of small
business owners that report working more hours.
Small Business Access to Capital loan to cover higher costs due to inflation (up from
Less than ‘Very Good’ 39% in Q1 2022).
Generally, small businesses today consider the An Enduring Trend—Small Business
quality of their access to capital as worse than five Is Resilient and Optimistic
years ago. In 2022, more small business owners say
their access to capital is simply “good” as opposed One striking thing about small business owners over
to “very good” compared to when we first asked the the past five years has been their steady optimism
question in 2017. More are also saying their access to that things will improve in the future no matter what
capital is simply “fair.” challenges the present throws at them. And this
quarter is no different.
Today, 40% report having good access to capital or
loans, while another 14% indicate they have very Looking ahead to next year, 43% of small businesses
good access. This represents a stark decline in the intend to increase their staff—an increase of six
share of small businesses that rate their access to percentage points from last quarter. Meanwhile, 43%
capital as very good (14% vs. 33%) compared to anticipate they will invest more over the next year,
when we first asked this question in our inaugural and 66% expect revenues to increase, both on par
SBI (Q2 2017). with Q1 2022.
Meanwhile, 26% now see their access to capital as It takes a lot of grit, determination, and hard work to
fair, up from 14% saying the same in 2017. start and sustain any small business. If anything, the
SBI over the past five years has demonstrated small
In 2022, business leaders also have something else that sets
Inflation Concerns Dominate them apart: relentless optimism.
This quarter, small businesses say inflation is, by far, SOUTH CHINA BUSINESS JOURNAL 18
their top concern. Forty-four percent of the small
businesses surveyed cite inflation as the biggest
challenge facing small business owners, up from 33%
last quarter. This is up significantly from 19% when
the question was first asked in Q3 2021. Furthermore,
nearly nine in ten (88%) are concerned about the
impact of inflation on their business, with almost half
(49%) indicating they are very concerned (up from
44% in Q1 2022 and 31% in Q4 2021).
To keep up, many small businesses report raising
the prices they charge customers. A strong majority
(69%) of small businesses surveyed report raising the
prices of their products or services due to inflation
in the past year. This is consistent with the 67% that
reported raising their prices due to inflation last
quarter. Nearly half (46%) report having taken out a
Working Harder
Over the last five years, one key finding stands out: in
a post-pandemic world with major labor shortages,
small business owners report working longer hours
than they used to.
In fact, half (50%) of small business owners say they
are working more hours now than they were a year
ago. This question was first asked in the inaugural SBI
(Q2 2017). Five years ago, 30% said they were working
more hours. This equates to a very significant
20-percentage point increase in the share of small
business owners that report working more hours.
Small Business Access to Capital loan to cover higher costs due to inflation (up from
Less than ‘Very Good’ 39% in Q1 2022).
Generally, small businesses today consider the An Enduring Trend—Small Business
quality of their access to capital as worse than five Is Resilient and Optimistic
years ago. In 2022, more small business owners say
their access to capital is simply “good” as opposed One striking thing about small business owners over
to “very good” compared to when we first asked the the past five years has been their steady optimism
question in 2017. More are also saying their access to that things will improve in the future no matter what
capital is simply “fair.” challenges the present throws at them. And this
quarter is no different.
Today, 40% report having good access to capital or
loans, while another 14% indicate they have very Looking ahead to next year, 43% of small businesses
good access. This represents a stark decline in the intend to increase their staff—an increase of six
share of small businesses that rate their access to percentage points from last quarter. Meanwhile, 43%
capital as very good (14% vs. 33%) compared to anticipate they will invest more over the next year,
when we first asked this question in our inaugural and 66% expect revenues to increase, both on par
SBI (Q2 2017). with Q1 2022.
Meanwhile, 26% now see their access to capital as It takes a lot of grit, determination, and hard work to
fair, up from 14% saying the same in 2017. start and sustain any small business. If anything, the
SBI over the past five years has demonstrated small
In 2022, business leaders also have something else that sets
Inflation Concerns Dominate them apart: relentless optimism.
This quarter, small businesses say inflation is, by far, SOUTH CHINA BUSINESS JOURNAL 18
their top concern. Forty-four percent of the small
businesses surveyed cite inflation as the biggest
challenge facing small business owners, up from 33%
last quarter. This is up significantly from 19% when
the question was first asked in Q3 2021. Furthermore,
nearly nine in ten (88%) are concerned about the
impact of inflation on their business, with almost half
(49%) indicating they are very concerned (up from
44% in Q1 2022 and 31% in Q4 2021).
To keep up, many small businesses report raising
the prices they charge customers. A strong majority
(69%) of small businesses surveyed report raising the
prices of their products or services due to inflation
in the past year. This is consistent with the 67% that
reported raising their prices due to inflation last
quarter. Nearly half (46%) report having taken out a
