According to the Small Business Administration (SBA), America is in the midst of the biggest entrepreneurial surge ever recorded. In looking at a long-term trend that is just coming into focus, a record 672,000 new companies with employees were created in 2005. In terms of short term growth, this marks a 30,000 annual increase from the previous year and even a 12 percent increase over the Dot-Com boom in 1996. The trend will continue, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting that first quarter job growth shows continued increases.

The growth in new companies is only the start. These companies create new opportunities for other small and home-based businesses to serve them in outsourcing and other service arrangements. Unlike the last major entrepreneur boom in the late ‘90s, the current surge is much more diverse, including more women, minorities, teenagers, and immigrants combined with the usual influx of white collar workers who have abandoned the corporate tower. Greater wealth is also showing in the start-up boom, with 37 percent of individuals in the highest tax bracket classifying themselves as business owners. Ripple effects are also resulting in small businesses spending about $138 billion on IT products and services.

Source: Forrester Research (www.forrester.com)

Previously published in the June 2007 issue of HOME BUSINESS® Magazine, an international publication for the growing and dynamic home-based market. Available on newsstands, in bookstores and chain stores, and via subscriptions ($15.00 for 1 year, six issues). Visit www.homebusinessmag.com