The Pandemic – the disruptors disruptor

The global pandemic has seen a surge in start-ups and as the virus continues to change everything, there are unprecedented opportunities for entrepreneurs to re-think our future

USA sees record growth in start-ups

Last year 4.4million new businesses were created, according to researchers at the Peterson Institute for International Economics – representing a record 24 per cent increase from 2019. Key sectors where this growth is surging are ecommerce, health and wellbeing, managed office space, delivery services,  SaaS and remote working platforms.

Strong global patterns of start-up explosion

All around the world we are seeing a boom in entrepreneurship. In France, official figures showed a 20 percent increase in new businesses last October, representing a historic record. Japan showed a similar hike, with a 14 percent increase in new businesses last September. In the U.K., the number of registered companies increased by 30 percent year on year at the end of 2020 and start-ups have grown in double-digit values since June. Similar start-up growth has been seen in countries ranging from Chile to Turkey.

COVID 19 the catalyst for change

Recessions have long been seen as the ideal breeding ground for start-ups. This is largely because of the disruption associated with economic shock. 

But the pandemic is different from other recessions in that it has ushered in more change and a seemingly more disruptive reset. New ventures are quite literally growing from the ashes of pre-pandemic ways of working.

And this is why commentators have been more bullish about the proliferation of start-ups this time around. 

“If there is one thing most of us had an abundance of in 2020, it was time,” explains business consultant and Forbes Councils Member Chastity Heyward. “As we spent more time at home, many individuals leaning toward starting a business have been able to devote time to conducting research for their new business or even develop and equip themselves for their future companies.”

And if lockdown gave entrepreneurs plenty of time to dream up an abundance of business ideas, then there are plenty of other favorable factors that help them to grow in a supportive environment.

There’s the fact that we’ve seen a big shift towards eCommerce. As digital habits hardened during the pandemic, entire virtual economies have sprung up and online sales growth is booming. we’re not going to go back to doing things the same way we did before. Yesterday’s recipe for success is fast becoming tomorrow’s formula for failure.

On top of which we’ve seen a bigger focus on the environment and sustainability. As a result, sustainable investments now account for more than a third of professionally managed assets across major markets. This has encouraged a lot more socially driven entrepreneurs to launch environmental and purpose-driven businesses.