Collin Fall 2025

Opinion: Average small business owner is over 50

by | Jan 24, 2019 | Opinion

Is it really the millennials who are leading the way when it comes to start up companies? “The truth is that older Americans are in the vanguard of America’s small businesses. A study conducted by the information services company, Experian, puts the average age of these entrepreneurs at 50.3 years old,” according to Dan Weber, president of the senior advocacy organization, AMAC.

Guidant Financial, small business funding, estimates that a third of small business owners are in their fifties and another 21% are 60 years of age or older.

What drives seniors to start up a new business? Weber says it’s because many of them have the know-how, skills and Rolodex – in other words, they are well prepared for the vagaries and surprises of their marketplaces. “Oh yeah, the fact that the fastest growing segment of the population is made up of us older folk probably has something to do with it.”

The Small Business Administration, in fact, claims that “the perfect time to leverage experience, passions, hobbies and resources to launch or purchase a small business” is when you are in your 50s, 60s and even your 70s.

The great majority of employers in the U.S. are small businesses. “The statistics show that small businesses are a principal driver of the economy. Companies with fewer than 500 employees account for an amazing 99.7% of American businesses. Even more startling, 89% of employers have fewer than 20 employees,” notes Weber.

Small businesses consistently account for as much as two thirds of new jobs created in the U.S., according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And business is so good these days that the National Federation of Independent Business [NFIB] reports that the small business sector has 38% more job openings than they can fill.

“The U.S. regained the top spot in the World Economic Forum’s ranking of the most competitive country (out of 140), after losing that position with the advent of the regulatory onslaught of the previous Administration,” says the NFIB.

Weber agrees that the Trump administration can take credit for the booming economy and job market, “notwithstanding former President Obama’s boast that it is all due to him. Whatever personal opinion one may have regarding President Trump, you must admit that it is his direct support of business, in general, and small business, in particular, that have been driving growth over the past two years.”

And, the president of the Association of Mature American Citizens adds that 40% of the entrepreneurs who have created new small businesses represent a true cross-section of the U.S. population. Weber cites a report by the Kaufman Foundation, which found that they include Hispanic [24%], African-American [9%] and Asian [7.5%] men and women.

In 2017, the first full year of Mr. Trump’s presidency, the nation saw “an 82 percent increase in the proportion of minority business owners, specifically with a higher percentage who identified as Hispanic and African American,” compared with 2016, the last full year of Mr. Obama’s term, says Guidant Financial.

NFIB president Juanita Duggan put it this way: “Main Street optimism is on a stratospheric trajectory thanks to recent tax cuts and regulatory changes. For years, owners have continuously signaled that when taxes and regulations ease, earning and employee compensation increase.”

The Association of Mature American Citizens [AMAC] [https://www.amac.us] is a vibrant, vital senior advocacy organization that takes its marching orders from its members. Live long and make a difference by joining us today at https://amac.us/join-amac.

For more stories like this subscribe in print or online.

NTMWD 2025

0 Comments

Subscribe 300x250 - Love

Related News

Jumping to conclusions

Jumping to conclusions

Columnist John Moore finds himself a little lost with new technology. Sometimes lost a lot. Courtesy John Moore Folks aren’t counting on each other like we were 50 years ago. And technology is the wedge that’s come between us. Our parents didn’t worry about us much...

read more
Gardens and Grandma

Gardens and Grandma

Columnist John Moore didn’t like gardens as a kid. That’s changed thanks to his grandmothers. Courtesy John Moore As a kid, I hated the vegetable garden. If you stood on our back porch, it was to your left. It took up the entire corner of our large yard. To me,...

read more
He’s still got it

He’s still got it

Columnist John Moore is the keeper of his family’s history. Including his parents’ vintage grandfather clock. Courtesy John Moore The difference in a collector and a pack rat is whether you’re rich or poor. Those with money are considered refined and people of taste....

read more
A numbers game

A numbers game

You don't see phone books much anymore. But even when they were around, columnist John Moore was nowhere to be found in one.Courtesy John Moore For those of us who once made our living working on the radio, one of the main competitors we had for advertising dollars...

read more
What a trip

What a trip

Traveling isn't columnist John Moore's favorite activity. He's pictured here with his father on a camping trip circa 1966. Courtesy John Moore Bruce Willis ad libbed a line in Die Hard that struck a chord with me. No, not the “Yipee Ki-Yay,” line. I think...

read more
Kitsch me if you can

Kitsch me if you can

Columnist John Moore grew up with yard art, and still proudly displays a concrete gargoyle out on the front porch. Photo: John Moore Pink flamingos. Chalk and concrete figures. Cast iron pots with flowers. Old school bells. Cars on blocks. The yard art of yesterday....

read more
Put a pencil to it

Put a pencil to it

Columnist John Moore loves pencils. Even pencils that cost $30. Courtesy John Moore They call it, “click bait.” It’s when you come across something online that sounds amazing, so you click on it to learn more. Click bait is something that turns out to be nothing as...

read more
Subscribe 300x250 - Love