Shropshire celebrates second record year for new company formations
More new businesses were established in Shropshire during 2019 than in any previous year – hitting a record high for the second year in a row.
Despite political and economic challenges, new figures show that 3,231 new companies were registered in the county compared to 2,634 during 2018, representing an increase of 22.7 per cent.
Meanwhile, the figures also show the number of companies to dissolve last year was 2,041 in the county.
This brings the total number of registered companies in Shropshire to 23,741, up from 22,421 at the end of 2018 – which equates to 5.9 per cent growth.
The statistics come from the Inform Direct Review of Company Formations, using data from Companies House and the Office for National Statistics.
Of the 3,231 newly-formed companies, 1,443 of them were in Telford and Wrekin, with the remaining ones established elsewhere in the county.
In Powys, 506 new businesses were formed and 398 dissolved last year, bringing the total number of registered companies to 5,058.
John Korchak, director of operations at Inform Direct, said: “Reporting a record year – the second in a row – for new company formations in Shropshire during a turbulent year, politically and economically, is a major achievement. Attracting new ventures and encouraging entrepreneurs to set up there, means that the county is clearly delivering positive support for business.
“With Brexit uncertainty casting a shadow – and some companies experiencing falling sales or choosing to relocate internationally – it is heartening that we are seeing signs of business optimism with so many new companies being created. This picture is mirrored nationally with an all-time high of nearly 700,000 new businesses formed in the UK as a whole.”
Alongside this record number of formations – 690,763 compared to 669,855 in 2018 – the overall number of UK companies also continued to grow, with a new high of 4,471,008, a 3.8 per cent increase on the total of 4,308,022 at the end of 2018.
To see a more detailed picture of company formations in Shropshire – including a full local breakdown – visit informdirect.co.uk/company-formations-2019/shropshire
