Press Release
Families driving Enterprise Britain
Family ties are fuelling the UK economy’s engine room of SMEs.
According to new research by Tenon Forum, nearly six in ten UK entrepreneurs involve a family member or members in their business in some capacity – with over a third as official employees and nearly one in six (13 per cent) as investors.
From helping out with the books to marketing the business, one in 12 owner managers (8 per cent) has family members working for free in the business, while more than one in 20 (6 per cent) look to kin for professional advice like legal counsel or consultancy.
Trouncing popular wisdom that bedroom and boardroom don’t mix, over a third of the nation’s SME bosses run their company with their partner or spouse. A further quarter run businesses with their parents or siblings.
Entrepreneurial dynasties are set to continue, it seems. Almost a quarter of owner managers intend to pass the business down the line, compared to one in six (14 per cent) who inherited their company.
The Tenon findings reveal a clear divide between Northern and Southern entrepreneurs. Over a quarter (27 per cent) in the North West, Yorkshire and Humberside and the North East inherited the family business, compared to less than one in ten (9 per cent) in London, East Anglia and the South East. And while 41 per cent of Northern SME bosses run the company with their spouse or partner, only 23 per cent of Southern enterprises are couple-run.
The larger the SME, the less likely it is to have family involved – only 18 per cent of those firms with a £20m+ turnover have family involved compared to 69 per cent of sub £1m businesses. Family firms proliferate most in the agriculture, mining and fishery sectors.
Michaela Johns, Director of Business Services at Tenon, commented: “It’s great to see that 21st Century family businesses are flourishing in the UK despite the many unique challenges they face each day. Our research highlights that they are well on track to continue to grow and succeed for generations to come.
“But whether finding new ways to compete with larger competitors or ensuring the business complies with a vast array of government legislation, family businesses should seek solid, objective advice from outside the family circle to best ensure success and growth. Most critically, they should be wary of shoe-horning relatives into hereditary roles which they are not well-equipped or appropriately skilled for. Many solid businesses have been run into the ground by second or third generation owners who did not possess the ability or commitment needed for the business to thrive.”
Ends.
For more information or to arrange an interview with a Tenon Forum spokesperson or case study, please contact:
Heather Wilson 020 7419 7322, heather@bbpr.com Sarah Weston 020 7419 7323, sarah.weston@bbpr.com Marsha D’Angelo 020 7419 8630, marsha@bbpr.com
Notes to Editors
About Tenon
Tenon is a leading provider of accounting and business advice to entrepreneurs. Tenon provides clients with expertise in Business Services, Tax, Financial Services, Corporate Finance, Recovery, Outsourcing and Forensic Accountancy. Tenon is the 9th largest UK accountancy firm with almost 1500 staff operating through a network of 29 offices across the UK offering local expertise with the backing of a national plc.
About the Tenon Forum
A regular survey of 560 SMEs is carried out every six months for the Tenon Forum by GfK NOP. These findings, combined with the analysis by an independent think tank of entrepreneurs, form the Tenon Forum report. The Tenon Forum is an independent think tank made up of leading entrepreneurs from the UK’s small and medium sized business community. The Tenon Forum Think Tank meets to analyse issues arising from this research.
About the research
GfK NOP interviewed 560 MDs, FDs and other senior directors of small and medium businesses - firms with between 5 and 499 employees. The survey covers all business sectors across the whole of England, Scotland and Wales and the results have been weighted to provide a representative sample of the British economy.
