Measure Description
Edmonton Small to Medium-sized Business measures the percentage of growth in the number of small to medium-sized businesses in the city. They are defined as businesses with 1 to 49 employees. Data comes from the Canadian Business Patterns database and is released twice a year by Statistics Canada. Information is gathered from the Business Register, which maintains a complete, up-to-date and unduplicated list of all active businesses in Canada that have a corporate income tax (T2) account, are an employer or have a GST account with an annual gross business income of more than $30,000.
Measure Importance
The climate for entrepreneurship in Edmonton impacts the growth of small to medium-sized business. This is seen as a measure of the City’s success in maintaining business-friendly policies and providing small business support.
Historical Data
Edmonton Percentage Change in Small to Medium-sized Businesses
Data source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Patterns database
CMA Percentage Change in Small to Medium-sized Businesses
Data source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Patterns database.
CMA Annual Bankruptcy Rates
Data source: Industry Canada – Office of the Superintendent of BankruptcyCanada.
Explanation of Performance
Edmonton small to medium-sized businesses saw a further decrease
to -1.4 percent in 2017 compared to -0.4 percent in 2016. Despite
the overall decrease, businesses with 10 to 19 employees saw the
most growth. According to Statistics Canada, the industries of oil,
construction and sales saw the most growth compared to 2016 for
businesses with 10 to 19 employees. The rise in oil prices and related
sectors are leading to more economic activity in the region. The further
decrease in small to medium-sized businesses could be attributed to
the slower economic recovery over the past few years that would have
directly impacted the purchasing power of consumers and the demand
for goods and services.
ADDITIONAL USEFUL INFORMATION
An additional measure of the growth in small to mediumsized
business for the Edmonton Census Metropolitan
Area (CMA) is provided. This measure is also broken down
by the number of businesses. The Edmonton CMA trend is
consistent with that of the City as the economic drivers for
the regional economy are similar to that of Edmonton.
The Edmonton CMA Annual Consumer Bankruptcy Rate
and Annual Business Bankruptcy Rate provide insight into
how Edmonton’s climate for business may impact small to
medium-sized businesses. It also provides a comparison to
overall business growth in the region. The Edmonton CMA
Annual Business Bankruptcy Rate provides information on
business failure, while the Edmonton CMA Annual Consumer
Bankruptcy Rate provides insight into how this business
failure rate compares to the rate of consumer insolvency. The
data shows no change in consumer and business bankruptcy
rates for 2017 compared to 2016.
Useful Links
For information about the City's strategic plan, The Way Ahead: http://www.edmonton.ca/city_government/city_vision_and_strategic_plan/the-way-ahead.aspx