In its annual small business outlook survey, QuickBridge Funding reported 81% of business owners are confident their sales will increase in 2020. The Q1 survey data assessed small business owners’ expectations and challenges about growth, sales, capital spending, cash flow, staffing, tariffs, tax laws and securing capital.

Highlights from the survey of 560 business owner respondents across a range of U.S. industries include:

• Sixty-six percent of business owners indicate they are optimistic about the U.S. economy increasing in 2020, with 28% believing it will remain flat.
• Despite the economic uncertainty that can accompany an election year, 82% of business owners expect business sales to grow, with only 5% anticipating sales to go down.
• Optimistically, 68% think their overall cash flow will be positive, with only 8% believing it will be negative.
• While ongoing international trade issues have caused some business owners to proceed with more caution, 66% indicated that the U.S.-China trade war specifically will have no effect on their business in 2020. The same goes for recent tax law changes, with 48% of respondents indicating no impact to their overall tax burden.
• Confidence in hiring was supported by close to 60% who plan to add staff, with only 3% anticipating a reduction in staff.
• Fifty percent expect their capital spending to increase, with 38% indicating it will stay the same, and 13% projecting a decrease.
• According to one-third of the small business owners surveyed, the biggest challenge they face is securing capital. Other challenges cited include increasing profits and hiring employees.

“It is encouraging to see that small business owners remain largely optimistic about the economy and their growth prospects in 2020,” said QuickBridge President Ben Gold. “We hope to support as many businesses as possible this year with funding solutions that meet their needs and help them realize their growth expectations.”