The number of businesses owned by Black Americans soared by 60.5 percent to 1.9 million between 2002 and 2007 and receipts of these businesses shot up 55.1 percent to a total of $137.4 billion in the same period, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today.
The increase in the number of Black-owned businesses in the five-year period exceeded the rate of increase for all minority-owned businesses by double digits; more than tripled the rate of increase for businesses owned by whites, and more than tripled the rate for all businesses in the country, Census said.
The rate of increase for receipts of Black-owned businesses outpaced the rate for receipts of all U.S. businesses. The total number of U.S. businesses increased by 18 percent from 2002, to 27.1 million in 2007, with receipts increasing by 33.5 percent, to $30.2 trillion.?
The new Census data comes from the Preliminary Estimates of Business Ownership?by Gender, Ethnicity, Race and Veteran Status: 2007, the first of 10 reports on the characteristics of minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses and their owners within the bureau?s Survey of Business Owners. The survey, conducted every five years as part of the economic census, collected data from more than 2.3 million businesses for the 2007 report. The number of veteran-owned businesses was included for the first time in the 2007 report, showing a total of 2.4 million businesses with receipts of $1.2 trillion.
The 2002-to-2007 growth rates for Black-owned businesses follow a more-than decade-long upward trend.
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration?s analysis of Census? 2002 data, Black-owned businesses had the highest growth rate among minority-owned business enterprises for several measures between 1997 and 2002, including 45.4 percent for the number of firms and 24.5 percent of total receipts for the group.
Commenting on the Census figures, the National Black Chamber of Commerce said a reduction in business and personal taxes, a prohibition on so-called project labor agreements (union-only jobs) and a strong push in federal procurement during the previous administration paid dividends to U.S. entrepreneurs.
?This isn?t a coincidence. There is cause and effect and something happened during the Bush years,? says Harry C. Alford, the chamber?s president, CEO and co-founder.
According to the 2007 preliminary estimates, businesses owned by minorities jumped 45.6 percent, to 5.8 million, between 2002 and 2007, more than twice the national rate, with the receipts of those businesses rising 55.6 percent, to $1.0 trillion. The number of white-owned businesses increased by just 13.6 percent, to 22.6 million in 2007, and their receipts totaled $10.3 trillion, up 24.1 percent from 2002.
Among ethnic minorities, Hispanic-owned businesses increased by 43.6 percent, to 2.3 million in 2007; businesses owned by Asian-Americans increased by 40.7 percent, to 1.6 million; and American Indian- and Alaska Native-owned businesses increased 17.9 percent, to 237,386. Receipts of Hispanic-owned businesses increased by 55.5 percent, to $345.2 billion, and those of Asian-owned businesses increased 57.3 percent, to $513.9 billion.
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The number of women-owned businesses ? irrespective of race — increased 20.1 percent from 2002, to 7.8 million in 2007, and receipts of these businesses jumped 27 percent, from $642.8 billion in 2002.
??The National Minority Business Council is extremely pleased to see this stunning growth in minority entrepreneurship, both in the number of businesses and in receipts,? said John F. Robinson, the organization?s president and CEO. ?We feel these increases are due, in large part, to efforts of organizations like ours and others that have been advocating for and pushing to increase business ownership and business development activity.?
Among other 2007 Census findings, 37.6 percent of Black-owned businesses were in health care and social assistance, repair and maintenance, and personal and laundry services. Figures for the same year show 30.0 percent of minority-owned businesses were in repair and maintenance, personal and laundry services, and health care and social assistance.
?Black-owned businesses accounted for 28.2 percent of businesses in the District of Columbia, which led the nation, followed by Georgia, where 20.4 percent of businesses were Black-owned, and Maryland, where 19.3 percent of businesses were Black-owned.
