Steady growth and high hopes for NZ business

www.eonetwork.org MEDIA RELEASE 8 FEBRUARY 2013 Steady growth and high hopes for NZ business The Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) has released the latest results from its Global Entrepreneur Indicator research project, a biannual survey of business owners from around the world. The survey focuses in part on performance-related metrics, such as jobs, profits and debt loads and partly on business climate, including access to capital and predictions on the economy.

The results suggest that New Zealand is in a stage of high business growth. Net profits increased for 61% of the NZ businesses surveyed plus 83% of Kiwi entrepreneurs predict an increase in net profit in the next six months – well above the expectations of other countries (73% global average). As well as that, 51% of NZ entrepreneurs reported increases in the number of full-time employees in the past six months.

Business revenue was up for 61% of the Kiwi businesses surveyed. Entrepreneurs in this country also have a positive outlook for the rest of the year, with 85% expecting an increase in revenue.

Tony Falkenstein, NZ EO member and founder of Just Water International Ltd says that the high growth that New Zealand business seems to be experiencing is promising, and indicates a sound business environment.

“Over the last six months, New Zealand has experienced high business growth despite the economic hardship of the last few years – and that’s certainly good news,” says Falkenstein. “Better yet, Kiwi entrepreneurs have high hopes for their businesses, and a positive attitude in regards to changes they expect to see in the next six months – more so than the rest of the world.”

In fact, 71% of the New Zealand based entrepreneurs surveyed indicated that they have the inclination to start a new business in this economic climate, so the future is looking bright for NZ business.

To learn more about the EO Global Entrepreneur Indicator and to read the full reports, visit www.entrepreneurindicator.com

A snapshot of the survey findings:

Jobs:
• 51% of NZ entrepreneurs reported net increases to their number of full-time
employees during the six months preceding the survey
• 61% of NZ business owners expect to increase their number of full-time employees in
the coming six months
• 54% of NZ entrepreneurs reported net increases to their number of part-time or
contract employees during the six months preceding the survey
• 44% of NZ entrepreneurs predict an increase in the number of contract or part-time
employees during the coming six months

Revenue and profit:
• 61% of NZ business owners reported increasing revenues during the previous six
months
• 85% predict an increase in revenue in the coming six months (compared with 78%
globally)
• 83% of NZ business owners surveyed said they predicted an increase in the net profit
of their business over the next six months (compared to 73% globally). Only 5%
predict a decrease, compared to 7% globally

Business environment:

• No NZ entrepreneurs surveyed predict a decrease in their business’s access to
capital in the coming six months (compared with 5% globally), and 39% expect it to
increase (compared with 32% globally)
• Around a quarter of all entrepreneurs globally expect their country’s economic
environment to worsen during the coming six months (24% in NZ, 27% globally)
• 71% of New Zealand entrepreneurs would consider starting a new business

About Entrepreneurs’ Organisation Founded in 1987, EO aims to build the world’s most influential community of entrepreneurs and enable them to learn from each other, leading to greater business success. Membership is by invitation only and candidates must be the founder, co-founder, owner, or controlling shareholder of a company with an annual gross revenue of at least US$1 million.

About the Global Entrepreneur Indicator:
Entrepreneurs and their businesses drive the global business landscape. Tomorrow’s jobs and innovations begin with today’s business owners. The Entrepreneurs’ Organization’s Global Entrepreneur Indicator taps into the minds of the world’s leading business owners to identify trends in the world economy. The survey, conducted throughout the month of June, ended with a sample of more than 2,200 entrepreneurs around the world, whose businesses average US$18.3 million in annual revenue and 192 employees.

About Entrepreneurs’ Organisation NZ:

Total members: 58
Age range: 31 - 65
Sales range: US$1 – US$27.8million
Total member sales: US$229million
Average member sales: US$4.33million
Total employees: 1360

ENDS

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