Three in Four Family Businesses Expect to Grow This Year

By Sarah Lynch, Inc. (TNS)

Family businesses are gearing up for growth.

Seventy-four percent of U.S. family businesses are anticipating at least 10 percent growth this year, according to newly released data from Family Enterprise USA, a nonprofit and advocacy group that promotes family businesses. While the organization’s full report—the Annual Family Business Survey—has not yet been released, the organization shared that these growth expectations mark a “significant jump from the prior year.”

Last year, 61 percent of family businesses grew—and 38 percent of those businesses grew by at least 10 percent. Additionally, most family businesses in the survey—90 percent—added “between 1 and 50 jobs to their payroll last year,” according to the report. By the end of 2023, 40 percent of surveyed businesses had gross revenues between $1 million and $5 million, and a quarter had over $50 million.

These findings come nearly a year after another report from PwC found that family businesses had had their biggest growth spurt in 15 years.

Yet family business owners still have concerns, according to this latest report, particularly in regard to taxes. And despite stronger-than-expected economic growth, small businesses in general aren’t feeling too optimistic. In fact, in March, their optimism hit the lowest point since 2012, according to the National Federation of Independent Business.

Still, it seems family businesses are setting their sights on future gains. Those that want to grow even further can leverage a few potentially untapped opportunities, according to last year’s PwC report, including enhanced digital capabilities, diverse boards, and a focus on ESG.

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