Slowly on the rise
Black-owned businesses are on the rise. Despite the recession, the U.S. Census Bureau reports that the number of black-owned businesses actually increased 2.3 percent between 2007 and 2012, bringing the total number to 9.4 percent of U.S. businesses overall.
About they survey
This statistic made researchers over at Thumbtack, a consumer services website that generates an annual Small Business Friendliness Survey, curious to find out more about which cities are the most supportive of black-owned businesses.
The general survey asks 18,000 small business owners to rate their city or state’s government when it comes to the tax and licensing laws and regulations that can either smooth the way for small businesses, or make things impossibly difficult. From this data, Thumbtack ranks cities and states from best to worst.
Usually younger and event-based
This time around, Thumbtack specifically surveyed 1,663 black small business owners. They found that, in general, black business owners tend to be younger than business owners of other races, and are more likely to work alone.
Thumbtack also looked at what types of businesses blacks own. Black business ownership was particularly concentrated in events (such as caterers or DJs), cleaning services, moving services, tax preparation, and computer repair.
9 of 10 in the South
When assessing the “friendliness” of their cities, black business owners had the same concerns as other races: are there government-sponsored training or networking programs available? How easy is it to manage your taxes? And are licensing rules doable, yet well-enforced?
Hats off to those cities who ranked in Thumbtack’s top ten for friendliness towards black-owned businesses, including Austin, Dallas, Columbus, West Palm Beach, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Kansas City, Nashville, Jacksonville, and Raleigh.
The numbers
Nine of the top ten cities are in the South. Three have black mayors, and six have a median household income for black families that is above the national average.
Thumbtack also noted a few cities where black business owners rated their city more highly than business owners of other races, including Baltimore, Philadelphia, Oakland, New York, and Chicago, to name a few.
