Businesses that make it
A lot of people think about launching a small firm, but only some would-be entrepreneurs ever follow through on the idea and even fewer survive in business five years. Here's a portrait of startups with staying power, according to a Brookings Institution study.
Source: "What Do Small Businesses Do?" by the University of Chicago's Erik Hurst and Benjamin Pugsley in the Fall 2011 Brookings Papers on Economic Activity. The figures are based on data from the University of Michigan's Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics, an annual survey of 1,214 people who were starting a business in fall 2005/winter 2006. Participants were asked why they were starting a business and their plans for innovation, among other topics. The results shown are for the 162 people who created startups that were still in business and generating sales five years after the initial interview.
