57% of Small Businesses in US Are Now Fully Open

As restrictions ease around the country, a new reports shows that 57% of all small businesses are fully open.

Small businesses were among the hardest hit as a result of the pandemic, with many lacking the infrastructure to move online or the resources to wait out long lockdowns. As restrictions ease, however, a slight majority have resumed full operations.

In its Small Business Recovery Report, Kabbage polled more than 550 small businesses. Of those polled 57% are now fully open.

Interestingly, one-third of the businesses said they were now either selling exclusively online or had significantly expanded their online sales. Online sales accounted for 57% of their total revenue, up from 37% before the pandemic.

The mass shift to sell online has changed the mindset of small businesses about adopting new technologies. Overall, 77 percent of small businesses agreed they’re more open than ever before to replace old systems and adopt new technologies to run their company more efficiently.

Understanding the status of small businesses and their future is an important step in understanding how to move forward.

“We knew the path to recovery would look different across businesses, but it’s clear there’s a stark difference between the largest and smallest of small businesses—which represent more than 80 percent of all companies in the U.S.,” said Rob Frohwein, Co-founder of Kabbage, an American Express Company. “As our economy recovers it’s imperative all small businesses, especially those most marginalized and vulnerable, have equitable access to financial tools, systems and stimulus programs to ensure we all rebound from this crisis together.”