Manitoba & Saskatchewan
small business owners give themselves top marks:
TD Canada Trust Small Business Survey reveals positive outlook
despite negative impact of recession
TORONTO, ON, October 8, 2009
– Sixty-seven percent of small business owners
in Manitoba and Saskatchewan say they are excited or optimistic
about 2010, making business owners in these provinces the most
optimistic in the country. This optimism may be fueled in part by
the successful year these business owners experienced, with 31%
rating their business performance an A or A+ versus just 19%
nationally. This is according to the second annual TD Canada Trust
Small Business Survey which was conducted to better understand the
impact of the recession on small businesses.
“For the TD Canada Trust Small
Business Survey, we asked small business owners how they were
affected by the recession and it is pleasantly surprising that half
(49%) of those in Manitoba and Saskatchewan said they were not
impacted. This is a sharp contrast to the only 25% of Canadians
nationally who said they were unaffected,” says Tim
Gillrie, Regional Sales Manager, TD Canada Trust.
What keeps small business owners in Manitoba
and Saskatchewan awake at night? Cash flow tops the list of
concerns (32% vs 28% nationally) followed by both hiring and
retaining good talent (15% vs 8% nationally) and the impact of the
recession (15% vs 31% nationally).
The impact of the recession across the
country is evident in how Canadian small business owners rate their
businesses. In contrast to the Manitoba and Saskatchewan responses,
only 19% of Canadian owners gave their business an A or A+, down
from 25% in 2008 and 44% gave their business a B, down from 50% in
2008. However, the majority of small business owners say they
managed well relative to the competition with 65% saying they fared
as well as their main competitors and 28% saying they fared
better.
The impact of the recession is still
anticipated to be a big issue Manitoba and Saskatchewan owners will
face in 2010—owners named it as the top challenge for
next year, tied with cash flow at 18%. These are followed by
managing growth (17%) and hiring and retaining good talent
(15%).
“Small business owners who are
seeking solutions to their business challenges can visit their
local TD branch and meet with a Small Business Advisor –
we can help with everything from cash flow management to planning
for growth,” says Gillrie.
Small Business Week, October 18 to 24, is the
perfect opportunity to visit a TD branch and learn more about
business financing, business plans, and how to start, grow and
sustain a small business.
What does 2010 look like
for Canada’s small business owners?
Nine percent of small business owners are excited about 2010 saying
it might be their best year yet. The largest group, at 48%, is
optimistic, believing 2010 will be a good year. Twenty-seven
percent indicated that they anticipate their business to be flat.
Fifteen percent of business owners are concerned, believing that
2010 will be another tough year and 2% say they are panicked, not
confident that their business can survive another year.
What keeps small
business owners up at night?
When small business owners were asked what one thing about their
business they think about more than anything else, 31% said it is
the impact of the recession, followed by managing cash flow
(meeting payroll, paying suppliers) at 28%. These were followed by
hiring and retaining talent (8%) and access to credit
(5%).
2009 challenges:
projected and actual
In the 2008 survey, small business owners anticipated that their
biggest business challenges in the coming year would be cash flow
(23%) followed by managing growth (20%). In reality, they said
their biggest challenges in 2009 were the impact of the recession
(32%) followed by cash flow (25%) and managing growth
(11%).
What changes did small
business owners make in the past year?
Reducing operating costs was the most cited change (40%) that small
business owners made in 2009. This was followed by streamlining
processes (16%) and faster delivery of product and services (9%).
Interestingly, 35% of small business owners made no changes to
their company in the past year.
About TD’s
sponsorship of Small Business Week
Small Business Week is a nation-wide celebration of
entrepreneurship, October 18 to 24, 2009, organized by the Business
Development Bank of Canada (BDC) to pay tribute to Canadian small
business. With the endorsement of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce,
organized events such as conferences, trade fairs and seminars
provide an opportunity for entrepreneurs to network and exchange
ideas to enhance business growth. TD is a sponsor of Small Business
Week and to recognize its small business customers and support
businesses in the local community, TD is sponsoring SOHO (small
office, home office) conferences in Toronto and Vancouver and
sponsoring regional events with chambers of commerce and business
associations across the country. Visit or call your local branch
for details.
Events that TD is sponsoring in Manitoba and
Saskatchewan include:
Organization |
Event |
Date of Event |
Regina Chamber of Commerce |
Business to Business Expo 2009 |
22-Oct-09 |
Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce |
Luncheon with Guest Speaker Frank McKenna |
28-Oct-09 |
If small business owners are not able to
attend events, they are encouraged to participate in one of TD
Canada Trust’s webinar workshops. A list of the workshops
can be found at www.tdcanadatrust.com/smallbusiness/webinars.jsp.
The next webinar on Unique Selling Proposition is on October 22,
2009 at 12:00 ET.
About the TD Canada
Trust Small Business Survey
The TD Canada Trust Small Business Survey polled small business
owners from across the country to understand the impact of the
recession on small businesses. The survey was conducted by Angus
Reid Strategies from September 8 to 14, 2009 with English and
French speaking small business owners (defined as business owners
with fewer than 20 employees) across Canada using the Angus Reid
Forum. The sample size included 1002 men and women.
About TD Bank Financial
Group
The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively
known as TD Bank Financial Group. TD Bank Financial Group is the
sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves
approximately 17 million customers in four key businesses operating
in a number of locations in key financial centres around the globe:
Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, including TD Canada Trust
and TD Insurance; Wealth Management, including TD Waterhouse and an
investment in TD Ameritrade; U.S. Personal and Commercial Banking
through TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank; and Wholesale
Banking, including TD Securities. TD Bank Financial Group also
ranks among the world's leading online financial services firms,
with more than 5.5 million online customers. TD Bank Financial
Group had CDN$545 billion in assets on July 31, 2009. The
Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD"
on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.
###
For further information,
contact:
Carolyn Abbass / Karen McCullough
Paradigm Public Relations
416-203-2223
cabbass@paradigmpr.ca /
kmccullough@paradigmpr.ca
Erin Baldwin
TD Bank Financial Group
416-308-4061
erin.baldwin@td.com
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