Alberta Small Business Statistics

Filed in archive Economic Outlook on October 16, 2006

Small business in Alberta is alive and well. Look at these numbers, 74% of all employment comes from firms with less than 10 employees. Small businesses produced 20% of Alberta's GDP.

Sure we have growing pains here in Alberta due to year over year growth driven by our heated oil and gas industry, but hey we are not complaining, at least not yet.

Alberta's small business sector is a vital component of the province's economy. In 2004, the sector was responsible for 20% of Alberta's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the chief indicator of economic productivity. The national average for small business contribution to GDP is 22%. (Source: Industry Canada, Key Small Business statistics, July 2006)

Small businesses (businesses that employ less than 10 employees) account for 74% (106,000) of all businesses with employees in Alberta. (Source: Alberta Economic Development, 2005 Alberta Business Monitor) Via Small Business Week

Even the Globe and Mail is getting in on the positive outlook for small business in Canada. Here in Western Canada almost half expect increased growth in the next year.

Even if not everyone is boasting about Canada's growth potential over the next year, about 46 per cent believe their own businesses will see increased growth during the period.

At least the price of fuel has dropped to more affordable levels otherwise we could begin to see an inflationary effect and we still could. What do you think?

What do you see in the cards for your business?

To learn more about Small Business Week in and around Alberta, make sure to stop by the Alberta Small Business Week events page.