Williams, C.C. and Martinez, A. (2014) Do small business start-ups test-trade in the informal economy? evidence from a UK survey. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 22 (1). pp. 1-16. ISSN 1476-1297
Abstract
The aim is to evaluate critically whether small businesses start-up in the informal economy and whether they do so to test-trade the viability of their businesses. Reporting a 2012 survey of 595 small business owners in the UK, 20% report trading informally when starting their business, 64% of whom asserted a main reason was to test its viability. Some 13% of all small businesses therefore start-up test-trading in the informal economy, although multivariate analysis shows that businesses started by men, with low current annual turnovers in particular sectors are significantly more likely to do so. Regional variations are not significant. The outcome is a call for not only similar studies in other countries to determine the proportion of enterprises that start up test-trading in the informal economy but also a discussion of the policy implications of this finding.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Authors/Creators: |
|
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2014 Inderscience. Reproduced in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | informal economy; underground sector; shadow economy; nascent entrepreneurship; business start-up; venture creation; enterprise development; UK |
Dates: |
|
Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Management School (Sheffield) The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Sociological Studies (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 17 Mar 2016 16:36 |
Last Modified: | 17 Mar 2016 16:36 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1504/IJESB.2014.062127 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Inderscience |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1504/IJESB.2014.062127 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:96575 |