First entrepreneurs’ census profiles U.S. business
The U.S. Census Bureau’s first annual entrepreneur census shows that nearly 1 in 10 U.S. companies with employees were less than 2 years old in 2014.
According to the Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs in 2014, which replaces the Census Bureau’s Census of Business Owners taken every five years, women own 19 percent of the 5.4 million firms with paid employees. Nearly 18 percent are minority-owned and 7.5 percent are owned by veterans.
More than a third of minority-owned businesses are in the hospitality and accommodations sector.
The survey is a public-private partnership among the U.S. Census Bureau, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and the Minority Business Development Agency.
The survey provides information for “families, communities, and federal and local leaders to help them make data-driven decisions,” U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker said. She added that the survey is a response to demand “for more timely statistics on the demographics of America’s business owners.”
Some 8.9 percent of businesses in 2014 were less than 2 years old. Of note is that the proportion of female- and minority-owned businesses is strong compared with new business owners who are white or veteran. However, white and veteran business owners had larger representation in businesses 16 or more years old in 2014.
About 26 percent of the businesses had receipts of $1 million or more, and the average salary for employees of American companies was $48,997. Most firms had fewer than 10 employees.
This census focused on the demographics of the business owners and their location. Future surveys will parse the data differently, according the a release from the census bureau.