The Shotgun Blog
« The Ontario PC Party goes 'right' but that isn't enough | Main | DEW line clean-up project a $580 million Cold War legacy »
Monday, June 29, 2009
BDC survey shows recession fails to dampen entrepreneurial spirit
Entrepreneurs are more optimistic about their business's prospects than they are about their industry or the economy as a whole in the current recession, a Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) survey has found. The poll also found that tight credit conditions remain a problem for a significant number of Canadian businesses.
The BDC survey shows an impressive 86% of Canadian entrepreneurs were very or somewhat optimistic about their company's growth potential. But they were less upbeat when asked about the potential for growth elsewhere. Optimism fell to 75% when the entrepreneurs were asked about their industry's potential for growth and 60% for the economy as a whole.
"Entrepreneurs see opportunities where others may see only difficulties," said Edmée Métivier, Executive Vice President, Financing and Consulting at BDC. "The SME [small and medium enterprise] sector has always contributed the lion's share of economic growth and, as a result, it will be pivotal to an economic recovery. More than ever, lenders to the SME market need to bring a flexible approach to their financing and investment decisions."
In other findings, entrepreneurs pointed to tightening credit as the number one factor that may adversely affect business growth in the near future. Fully 70% of entrepreneurs identified tight credit as a negative for growth, followed by the recession (65%), increased fuel costs (45%) and material (40%).
Posted by Matthew Johnston
Posted by westernstandard on June 29, 2009 | Permalink
Comments
"The BDC survey shows an impressive 86% of Canadian entrepreneurs were very or somewhat optimistic about their company's growth potential."
Have you ever heard of a pessimistic entrepreneur?
Posted by: Charles | 2009-06-29 11:56:08 AM
Good point, Charles. If the government would get out of the way we would see a much larger number of Canadian entrepreneurs, who, by the way, would be much better qualified to lead the economy out of any recession.
Posted by: Alain | 2009-06-29 12:56:34 PM
What's the mother of invention, again?
Of course they're optimistic, this is the perfect breeding ground for entrepreneurs. People with good jobs tend to be complacent.
My son tells me that more people become millionaires during a recession, than during a boom. I don't know if he's right, but I hope he keeps thinking that way.
I started a business to supply a service that was in demand. That doesn't make me an entrepreneur. Sometimes I feel like I inherited the business from a mean old uncle. My next business might be a bit more challenging, and that interests me.
Maybe I'll start a blog site, strictly for oilpatch people. I could call it "the patch". Now, if only roughnecks had more time on their hands, to sit in front of a computer.
Posted by: dp | 2009-06-29 6:29:58 PM
Have you ever heard of a pessimistic entrepreneur?
Posted by: Charles | 2009-06-29 11:56:08 AM
A friend of mine happens to be a stockbroker whose forte is shortening stock. I guess you could say he's optimistic about pessimism.
Posted by: The Stig | 2009-06-29 6:50:48 PM
"whose forte is shortening stock"
Is he baking a cake? ;)
Posted by: Charles | 2009-06-30 6:13:47 AM
The comments to this entry are closed.