Amid economic turmoil, high inflation, a cost of living crisis, and the most challenging business conditions for over a decade, 2022 actually saw record numbers of new company registrations in the UK.
Data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) reveal that 784,762 businesses were registered with Companies House last year.
This represents an increase of almost 30,000 new business registrations, when compared to 2021 figures.
However, it’s not all rainbows and butterflies for the UK business landscape, as the rate of company insolvencies continue to rise, paired with an ever-growing presence of ‘Zombie Companies’.
Zombie Companies are those which earn just enough money to remain operative, but can only service the interest of their debt – rather than paying off the debt itself – after covering business overheads each month.
A Boon for British Startups
Despite the rise of insolvencies and Zombie Companies, some commentators such as Emma Jones (the Founder of Enterprise Nation), can see green shoots emerging from the mire.
“Amidst the doom and gloom and straitened times we find ourselves in, the British enthusiasm for entrepreneurship continues to grow.
“We know that these figures are not a perfect reflection of the UK’s start-up community, but they do tally with our own research and new membership data so far this year.
“For example, we’ve already seen a dramatic increase in new members – up 78 percent on this time last year.”
Jones continued: “Despite being constantly bombarded with an unrelentingly bleak economic outlook and the news that many businesses are struggling with energy bills, skills and labour shortages and an increasing tax burden – people still have not been deterred from starting a business. In fact, the opposite is true.”
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