NEWSFOCUS
Growing in confidence
Research from NatWest shows that the number of people wanting to run their own business is recovering following the EU referendum
T
he latest NatWest Entrepreneurship Monitor has revealed that interest in starting a new business has been increasing in 2017, after having fallen to a historic low in the run up to and after the EU referendum. Following last June’s Brexit vote, economic uncertainty shook the confidence of potential entrepreneurs, with the proportion of people wanting to start a new business dropping from 39 per cent in Q2 2015 to 10 per cent in Q3 2016. A recent poll has revealed, however, that those saying that they would like to start a business increased to 14 per cent as the economy remained relatively robust. Despite aspiring entrepreneurs beginning
to regain confidence, less than one in five feel that now is a good time to start a business. Of those that have considered owning their own business, two-fifths feel that they are held back by not having a business plan or the fact that their financial security would be put at risk by borrowing money. In London and the West Midlands, the
number of people wanting to start their own business is around double the number of people who have actually made the leap, while in Scotland this discrepancy is more than three times the amount. The research also revealed that men are
more likely than women to want to run their own business, at 16 per cent versus 12 per cent, and a quarter are more inclined to believe that now is the right time to start, compared with 18 per cent of women. Over half of women (58 per cent) are held back by fear of failure (50 per cent of men said the same), and only 37 per cent of women know where to go to get the right information and advice. Encouragingly, most of the barriers faced by women today are not insurmountable. More than two-thirds of women said they would be far more encouraged to take the first step if they had inspiring female role models, access to a larger network of local businesswomen and female entrepreneurs, and more information targeted at women’s specific circumstances. Female entrepreneurs also show good levels of confidence, with women more likely than
men to say they have all the skills they need to succeed (30 per cent compared with 22 per cent).
Alison Rose, CEO of commercial and private banking at NatWest, says: “The drop in confidence given the changing economic climate caused by the referendum was no great shock, but as the economy has started to bounce back, we have also seen a gradual rise in the number of people interested in starting a new business. “Undoubtedly, there will be bumps in the
road as negotiations on Brexit continue, and confidence levels may fluctuate, but it’s very encouraging to see us moving in the right direction again and we expect this to continue post Q1.
“However, in order for more people to take the plunge and run their own business, banks must do their utmost to provide support in these early stages. It is clear that women in particular want local support, local networks and local advice, and at NatWest we are doing more to support new UK businesses by going beyond just finance to help businesses reach their ambitions.” n
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