Startup Companies ‘Driving the UK Economy’

Startup companies have been responsible, in large part for driving UK economy growth over the past decade and a half.

That’s according to a new set of figures compiled by Experian which suggests that there are currently more than twice as many businesses operating around the country as was the case in the year 2000.

Many of the almost 2 million new companies created since the start of the century are based entirely online but the UK’s retailing, finance and construction sectors have all seen a dramatic rise in numbers.

Overall, the number of businesses in Britain is estimated to have risen from 1.5 million in 2000 to 3.4 million in 2014, with economic growth now being driven by startups on an unprecedented scale.

According to Experian, the number of companies operating in the UK increased in each year from 2000 to 2014 with the exceptions of 2009 and 2010.

Last year apparently saw the most new businesses created around the country with more than half a million new companies set up during that 12-month period.

“The UK’s business landscape has changed dramatically in the 21^st century,” said Max Firth from Experian. “Fewer companies are being created in asset-intensive sectors where there is a need for expensive machinery, so the requirement for bank loans and an overdraft has shifted as a result.”

“Businesses which understand the nature of the ‘Generation Z’ startups and how they operate will be in the best position to serve them as they grow,” he said.

London has been home to the most new companies created over the past 15 years with Birmingham, Manchester, Leicester and Reading also having seen significant rises in their respective startup populations.

The single most prolific area of the country for startup registrations so far this century has been East London, where 3.4 per cent of all new British companies were believed to be created over the course of 2013.

Overall there have been trends towards growth in web-based companies with few liabilities and a reduction in the number of “asset intensive” businesses such as those in print or manufacturing industries.

“Startups are created using knowledge, skills and the internet, often with just a laptop, mobile phone and a small or home office,” explained Max Firth from Experian.