New business applications reached a 15-year high in 2020, according to data from the US Census Bureau. Online retailers made up almost a quarter of all new business applications in 2020, nearly tripling in amount. But only 30% of new retailers were considered likely to succeed and create jobs. Other industries such as food service and health care had the highest rates of potential success at 99%.
Last month, there were almost 500,000 applications for new businesses[1]. Applications have increased over 70% since February 2020. After dropping for the first few months of the pandemic, applications rose in August 2020.
