GOAL

EARLY FINDINGS

Startup: Definition and Statistics

• A startup is a company that is in the first stage of its operations. These companies are often initially bankrolled by their entrepreneurial founders as they attempt to capitalize on developing a product or service for which they believe there is a demand.
• A startup is a young company that is just beginning to develop. Startups are usually small and initially financed and operated by a handful of founders or one individual.
• According to the last U.S. Census Bureau reports about employment in the United States (2014), the number of employees in newly established firms was 2,421,659 employees.
• About 40% of startups are profitable, 30% break even, and 30% are continually losing money.
• The fastest-growing industries with the top number of small business startups in 2018 were:
• Business services: 11%;
• Food/Restaurant: 11%;
• Health/Beauty/Fitness: 10%;
• General retail: 7%;
• Home services: 6%.
• The startup failure rate at four years is about 44%. Thus, more than half of all startups actually survive to their fourth year.

Employment by Company Age

• According to the U.S. Census Bureau data published in 2009, only two percent (2%) of Americans working in private sector businesses were employed in companies started that year. Those aged one-to-ten, only employed another 19.5 percent of private-sector workers.
• The Census Bureau’s data reveal that 55.8 percent of those working in the private sector are employed in companies 26 years or older.
• Another 8.4 percent have jobs in companies aged 21 to 25. And 6.6 percent work in businesses between 16 and 20 years old.

Startups: Employment Statistics

•  307,192 firms have 1-4 employees 
•  51,571 firms have 5-9 employees 
•  25,777 firms have 10-19 employees 
•  13,519 firms have 20-49 employees 
•  3,715 firms have 50-99 employees 
•  1,584 firms have 100-249 employees 
•  356 firms have 250-499 employees 
•  116 firms have 500-999 employees 
•  59 firms have 1,000-2,499 employees 
•  10 firms have 2,500-4,999 employees 
•  Two firms have 5,000-9,999 employees 
•  One firm had more than 10,000 employees.