Operation HOPE and Survey Monkey have collaborated to launch the HOPE Minority Small Business Index. The Index is intended to help shed “light on what it’s like to be a Black small business owner or aspiring entrepreneur today.” Questions from the inaugural survey of 1,167 Black small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs covered experiences like “hope for reaching their business goals, to mentorship, to their tolerance for risk, to their access to capital, and finally, future paths for success for Black small business owners.” Findings from the survey, taken from a Survey Monkey article written by Erin Pinkus reveal (directly quoted):
Key findings include:
- Most Black aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners find the odds stacked against them in building their businesses: 79% say minority entrepreneurs are much less likely to succeed in building a business compared with whites.
- Despite what they perceive as long odds, nearly as many (69%) are counting on their small business as their primary source of income, and to compound the existing hurdles, 58% lack access to capital today.
- The pandemic adds yet another strain: 77% say COVID-19 will have permanent effects on the way they run or start their business.
A few glimmers of HOPE exist:
- Virtually all (98%) Black small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs are hopeful they will succeed in reaching their business goals.
- Fully 86% expect their revenue to increase in the next 12 months; over twice the shares of small business owners nationwide.
- Almost three-quarters (74%) expect tech innovation to have a positive effect on their business; again, over two times the shares of small business owners nationwide.
Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
