An Overview of How Small Businesses Perform Amid Economic Uncertainty
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Running a small business is hard enough. Throw in inflation, rising interest rates, and signs of a recession, and the task becomes a strenuous uphill battle for America’s entrepreneurs.
Fortunately, there is an increasing number of digital tools that small businesses and entrepreneurs can use to lower costs, increase productivity, and enhance operational efficiency. Last year, the Bipartisan Policy Center issued a report in partnership with Intuit examining small business digitalization. More recently, BPC worked with Shopify to put together a public discussion exploring how small businesses are faring in, and navigating through, present economic uncertainty. As Erin Pelton, Shopify’s vice president of communications and public affairs, noted during this event, Shopify offers an “operating system” for small businesses and entrepreneurs to help run and grow their companies.
The event, “Pulse Check: How Small Businesses Perform Amid Economic Uncertainty,” also explored how policymakers can support small businesses. Two members of the House Small Business Committee, Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY) and Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA), joined to provide their perspective. A panel discussion included Pelton, Anika Hobbs, founder and owner of Nubian Hueman, and John Dearie, founder and president of the Center for American Entrepreneurship.
Participants discussed the current state of small business, public policy, and the recently launched Shopify Entrepreneurship Index, a new quarterly tool that compares countries and U.S. states based on the performance of Shopify entrepreneurs. In addition to the broad issue of inflation, the two members of Congress highlighted continuing workforce challenges facing small businesses. Here are additional takeaways and highlights from the event.
The Economic Importance and Role of Small Business
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“We’re completely digital. Even though we’re in a brick-and-mortar space, everything is digital. We don’t really paper anything. … Inventory, scheduling, every aspect that you can probably think of.”
—Anika Hobbs | Founder and Owner, Nubian Hueman
“It’s a great time to be an entrepreneur.”
—Erin Pelton | Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs, Shopify
Access to Capital
“One of the reasons that I ran for Congress was because of my experience applying for an SBA loan to purchase our building. I spent a year applying for a 504 loan to purchase our building. … This application was the size of a phone book. When you think about the barriers that presents to other business owners, the amount of time it takes to run a business, and then to spend this additional time.”
—Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA)
Workforce
“Workforce is a huge piece, it’s a huge piece.”
—Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA)
“Eighty percent of those with intellectual, physical, and developmental disabilities are unemployed. Eighty percent. There are millions of Americans who are neurodivergent … that if we were to redefine job descriptions, if we were to break down some of the government regulations, and incentivize hiring those individuals … this is an opportunity not only to grow the workforce but to really encourage people who have never experienced the benefit of earning a paycheck and going to a job where they feel fulfilled. That is something we ought to invest in.”
—Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY)
Entrepreneurship Data and the New Shopify Entrepreneurship Index
“Part of the difficulty in getting that handle on the state of entrepreneurship is, there’s a lot of disagreement or at least different views on what entrepreneurship means.”
—John Dearie | Founder and President, Center for American Entrepreneurship
“There aren’t a lot of great resources that are available that are timely, that are comprehensive, and that allow policymakers and people in positions of power to understand what’s going on at any given moment. That was really the impetus behind us launching [the Shopify Entrepreneurship Index]. We really want to democratize entrepreneurship, make it more accessible to everyone, and help those in power understand how to make it easier to start a business and scale it.”
—Erin Pelton | Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs, Shopify
Role of Public Policy in Supporting Small Business
“Every crisis has a silver lining. I think the pandemic did something. There’s still a lot of analysis and head-scratching going on. … The spike in new business applications is persisting. Something has been awakened. … It’s a call to action. What can policymakers do to support, cultivate, encourage, and really put the wind in the sails of this trend and make the most of it?”
—John Dearie | Founder and President, Center for American Entrepreneurship
“We understand you [small businesses]. … The largest economic or business lobby group is the small business community. They just are unable to speak in a single voice. … We get and understand the need to have small businesses listened to and heard.”
—Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY)
“We need small business owners to start standing up. I know how much work it takes to run a small business. It’s really critical that we have a diversity of stakeholders at the table.”
—Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA)
“There’s something that you don’t know until you get into business. Once you become a business owner, you start to realize that your business is not just about working in your zone of genius, which would be amazing. But I never knew that I would have to be a local advocate, a government advocate, know so much about policy, know who can create change in the policy. There’s so much learning and understanding about being an entrepreneur that you don’t really realize.”
—Anika Hobbs | Founder and Owner, Nubian Hueman
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