The Future of Small Business: The Artisan Economy

February 25, 2008

When you think of artisans, don’t think of the traditional image of jewelers, watchmakers or other craftspeople. Intuit’s definition is broader and includes people with a host of creative and technical skills. The report projects the development of a “barbell economy,” where industry sectors are characterized by a few large corporate players and hundreds, if not thousands, of very small firms and entrepreneurs.

Very few medium-sized firms will prosper in this new structure. However, small firms, even solo entrepreneurs, are well positioned to thrive in this new structure as they are best able to provide customers with highly targeted, customized and relevant products. The study also predicts a boom in globalized small firms. As cross border networks grow, doing business overseas will become a fact of life for small business. By 2018, analysts project that nearly half of US small businesses will be involved in global trade.

Full Report: http://http-download.intuit.com/http.intuit/CMO/intuit/futureofsmallbusiness/SR-1037C_intuit_future_sm_bus.pdf