it looks like the confidence placed in small businesses to revitalise the economy has borne fruit as a new research study has revealed lower insolvency figures.
According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, the number of insolvencies in 2013’s first quarter have dropped off by nearly 400 in comparison to figures from the last quarter of the previous year. There were only 3,285 insolvencies in the first months of 2013, while there the number of insolvencies that occurred over the last three months of 2012 came in at 3,657.
Economists say that this can be attributed in no small part to firms – especially small businesses – feeling confident enough to expand their operations. Freelancers and umbrella contractors have played a major role in this, as contractors are so cost effective to use in place of permanent employees – to say nothing of the flexibility an interim worker offers an employer!
Companies confident enough to take risks and attempt to grow their business are an integral part of growing the economy, and if the number of insolvencies is any indication, things could be looking up. There’s most likely a growing demand for business as well, though it’s likely that this demand was simply pre-existing and was waiting patiently for business to grow to meet these levels of demand, and for what it’s worth the fortunes of the economy are tied to small businesses as much as the fortunes of these SMes are tied to the UK’s burgeoning cadre of skilled and qualified freelance workers!
Of course, it’s not all good news, as some sectors performed better than others. Many markets are actually still in decline, such as retail sales. The rising cost of living coupled with the fact that most Brits are suffering from stagnant wages has thrown a serious spanner in the works for the retail sector.
The only exception to this is the online retail market, where discount prices and volume sales have helped to drive market activity. Online-only sellers such as Amazon are positively raking it in when compared to high street shops, and this trend is likely to continue for the foreseeable future!
