According to research by Yell, close to one million small businesses have £1,000 or less in savings, to help them during a downturn in revenue. This equates to 17% of all SMEs within the UK.

The study also revealed the current lack of confidence many owners have on the likelihood of still being in business in 2024, with 13% of owners uncertain whether they will still be trading in 12 months time.

The hair & beauty industry has been highlighted in this research with senior leaders of SME hair & beauty businesses (under 250 staff) also being surveyed and the study showing that one in 10 (9.8%) have £1,000 or less in the bank, and almost one in five (18%) lack confidence that their business will be running in the next three to five years.

Over a third (37%) of senior decision makers in the hair & beauty industry also say they are able to save significantly less compared to what they were able to save pre-pandemic.

The research also found that one in 10 (10%) SMEs say they can’t save anything each month, with a further 9% also only able to save up to £200 per month. For sole traders, this is even more of a concern, as one in three currently don’t save anything each month.

“There is currently a lot of discussion around personal savings, and this feedback from UK SMEs is a good reminder of the importance of regularly reviewing where to invest and where to make savings,” comments Mark Clisby, Co-CEO at Yell.

“Quite often, a common reaction can be to cease marketing activity, but time and again we see this as a counterproductive option. Marketing is required to bring in new customers and keep revenue coming in and your competitors may be increasing their media investment, so will be more prominent.”

www.business.yell.com

By Editor