With March marking the second anniversary of the COVID outbreak, industry analysts have been reflecting on how the business community has had to grow and shift over the past two years.
Recently, Meta–formerly Facebook–released its Global State of Small Business Report. The report shows that Florida businesses are continuing to show their resilience.
The report highlights the economic impacts of the pandemic, how businesses across the state continue to adjust and the sentiments of business leaders about moving forward.
The data shows some significant findings from entrepreneurs in Florida, which includes:
• 87 percent of businesses are operational or engaging in revenue-generating activities, nine percent higher than the national average
• 92 percent of women-owned businesses are operational as of January and performing significantly better than most other states.
• 53 percent of businesses are finding success online, with at least a quarter of their sales coming from their digital presence. That marks a 13 percent increase since the summer of 2021.
The data also shows that Florida’s small businesses are still facing some economic challenges.
• 26 percent of businesses are expecting cash flow challenges.
• 27 percent of businesses are expecting a lack of demand and/or customer challenges.
• 73 percent of businesses have not received any kind of financial assistance, which is higher than any other state.
Over the course of the pandemic, Meta has focused on supporting small businesses, through initiatives such as developing innovative new tools and products to support businesses, providing grants to business owners, and hosting digital tool training events.
Meta Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg said while Omicron stalled the small business recovery, there are still many reasons for optimism.
Meta found more than 200 million businesses use their apps every month to create virtual storefronts and reach customers.
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