A variety of information about small business operations is available on a state-by-state basis as part of annual profiles compiled by the Office of Advocacy, an independent office within the United States Small Business Administration.
The profiles provide information on state and national economic growth, industries and jobs using data from government statistical agencies. The profiles are available online from www.sba.gov/advocacy.
“Continuing Advocacy’s efforts to modernize and improve the application of our products, this year’s small business profiles have elevated the bar of usability,” said Darryl L. DePriest, chief counsel for advocacy. “This transparent format allows for anyone to reproduce and create their own small business profiles specific to their needs or the needs of their stakeholders.”
Christine Kymn, chief economist and director of economic research for the Office of Advocacy, said the profiles also offer information that can be used to create policies that promote small businesses. “The revamped design and intuitive charts in this year’s profiles accurately display the extremely important role small businesses play in our nation’s success,” Kymn said.
According to the latest profile for Colorado, the nearly 573,000 small businesses in the state represent almost
98 percent of all businesses. Small businesses employ a total of about 1 million people in Colorado, nearly 49 percent of all employees in the state. Small businesses are defined as those with fewer than 500 employees.
With almost 101,000 firms, professional, scientific and technical services ranked as the top industry classification for small businesses in Colorado. Construction ranked second, followed by health care and social assistance, retail trades and accommodations and food services.
The United States is home to 28.8 million small businesses. Small businesses represent 99.7 percent of all businesses with employees and employ about 48 percent of the private-sector workforce.