September 8, 2017
16th annual survey shows businesses either growing or holding steady, most plan to stay in CT, concerns about state government continue
HARTFORD – BlumShapiro and the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA) today released their 16th annual survey of Connecticut businesses. It was released at 10am today at The Connecticut Economy Conference at the Hartford Downtown Marriott. The 2017 Survey of Connecticut Businesses shows the overwhelmingly majority of Connecticut businesses continue to either grow or hold steady, more than 90 percent of businesses plan to remain here, and profitability remains significantly up from five years ago.
The survey, though, also finds that while more than 90% of the businesses plan to remain here, there are concerns about doing business in Connecticut, including high taxes, political inaction and too much regulation.
“We continue to see positive signs for Connecticut’s business community-profitability is still up from five years ago and losses are at a 10-year low,” Joseph Kask, CEO of BlumShapiro, said. “Now is the time for us to work with state leaders to ensure they are focused on creating a business climate that encourages and sustains growth within our state.”
The survey shows that 65% of businesses expect to show a profit in 2017, a major increase from the 56% number reported back in the 2013 survey. They survey also shows only 11% of businesses expect to lose money this year, the lowest number in more than a decade, Mr. Kask said.
When asked about issues that are hindering business growth, 52% responded by referencing issues that currently exist with the state government, he added.
“More than half of the businesses surveyed this year indicate that state government and its actions have hindered progress through lack of decision-making, high taxes and costly mandates. Despite this, nearly 85% of them continue to either grow or hold steady, and the vast majority say they plan to remain in Connecticut,” Thomas DeVitto, Chief Marketing Officer for BlumShapiro, said today. “The study makes it clear that more strategic collaboration between the public and private sectors can only help in improving the business climate even more.”
Additional findings of the survey, conducted this past June, include:
- Nearly one-third of those surveyed (32%) say they have been approached by other states to relocate their businesses there (down from 34% a year ago), but 92% of them plan to remain in Connecticut (up from 90% a year ago), up from 70% in 2012.
- The primary area in which companies are investing their resources is new technology (22%), followed by employee training (20%) and then by property/facilities (16%).
- Only 5% of those surveyed plan to sell their business in the next 12 months and only 19% plan to do so in the next five years, compared with 52% who have no plans to sell.
- Among businesses surveyed, the greatest demand for new hires is with mid-level workers (37%), followed by line workers (28%) and entry-level positions (26%).
Download the 2017 Survey of Connecticut Businesses Here >>
Contacts
Thomas DeVitto
Chief Marketing Officer
BlumShapiro
860-561-6851
tdevitto@blumshapiro.com
Dan Tapper
Sullivan & LeShane Public Relations, Inc.
860-560-0001 (office)
860-573-4236 (mobile)
dtapper@ctpr.com