Many small business owners across the country have seen significant improvement for their companies in the last few years, as the broader U.S. economy has taken a number of steps forward. However, many parts of the country don’t seem to be as good at engendering small business success as others, for a number of reasons.
Texas is currently considered the No. 1 state in the country for starting a new business or running an existing one overall, with a total rating of A-plus, improved from an A last year, according to the latest annual data from Thumbtack. However, three other states – Idaho, Utah, and Virginia – also received A-plus ratings, but had individual levels that had them rated lower than Texas. The “worst” condition in in the Lone Star State came as a result of the infrastructure of networking and training programs available to entrepreneurs, while the other states had “worst” conditions of B-plus.
“Creating a business climate that is welcoming to small, dynamic businesses is more important than ever, but rarely does anyone ask small business owners themselves about what makes for a pro-entrepreneur environment,” said Jon Lieber, the chief economist for Thumbtack. “Thousands of small business owners across the country told us that the keys to a pro-growth environment are ease of compliance with tax and regulatory systems and helpful training programs.”
Where else are conditions good?
In all, the survey found that 20 states of the 38 examined with ratings ranging from B-minus to A-plus, and nine more were between C-minus and C-plus, the report said. Most of the Midwest and South were in this category, and a few states in the Southwest (excluding California and New Mexico) were as well.
However, when it comes to how easy it is to hire new workers in a state, the results are very different, the report said. There were four states that garnered A-plus ratings (Nevada, Utah, Kentucky, and Louisiana) while 15 more ranged from B-minus to A, and were more evenly spread over the entire map of the U.S., rather than being constrained to any specific regions.
Owners who want to best position themselves for success going forward might want to think about the ways in which they can streamline their companies’ expenses. That could include cutting costs for small business insurance coverage, including commercial insurance, as a means of potentially saving thousands of dollars per year.
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