Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

18 percent of businesses opening in March 1994 remained open as of March 2017

November 01, 2018

In March 1994, a total of 569,419 business establishments opened, accounting for 4,132,450 jobs. As of March 2017, 102,360 of those establishments, or 18.0 percent, were still in business. After one year, 453,134 establishments of the 569,419 establishments opened in March 1994 remained open, representing a 79.6-percent survival rate.

Survival rates of establishments opened in 1994 and percent of initial employment for surviving establishments, March 1994–March 2017
Month Survival rate of establishments Percent of initial employment Business establishments Employment

Mar 1994

100.0% 100.0% 569,419 4,132,450

Mar 1995

79.6 100.2 453,134 4,140,239

Mar 1996

68.1 97.1 387,868 4,012,051

Mar 1997

60.6 95.5 345,155 3,947,376

Mar 1998

54.3 93.5 309,084 3,862,645

Mar 1999

49.6 90.1 282,484 3,721,580

Mar 2000

45.2 88.5 257,488 3,655,305

Mar 2001

41.5 84.9 236,094 3,506,596

Mar 2002

38.3 79.3 218,171 3,276,821

Mar 2003

35.7 75.4 203,484 3,117,464

Mar 2004

33.6 73.2 191,428 3,025,551

Mar 2005

31.8 71.7 180,909 2,962,831

Mar 2006

30.3 70.5 172,805 2,914,145

Mar 2007

28.7 69.1 163,477 2,856,566

Mar 2008

27.2 67.1 154,939 2,772,210

Mar 2009

25.5 61.4 145,109 2,535,759

Mar 2010

24.1 58.6 136,978 2,421,364

Mar 2011

23.0 58.2 130,986 2,403,881

Mar 2012

22.0 58.1 125,354 2,399,386

Mar 2013

21.2 57.7 120,593 2,383,994

Mar 2014

20.3 57.4 115,619 2,372,009

Mar 2015

19.5 57.0 111,183 2,355,817

Mar 2016

18.8 56.6 106,785 2,339,019

Mar 2017

18.0 56.1 102,360 2,320,271

In March 2017, the establishments that had been in business since March 1994 accounted for 2,320,271 jobs. This represented 56.1 percent of the employment associated with business establishments that first opened in March 1994. The 191,428 establishments that survived for 10 years had employment of 3,025,551 in March 2004, or 73.2 percent of the jobs associated with business establishments that first opened in March 1994.

When business establishments opened in March 1994, average employment per establishment was 7.3. In March 1995, while the number of establishments decreased from 569,419 to 453,134, employment for surviving establishments was slightly higher than March 1994 employment. This resulted in an average of 9.1 jobs per surviving establishment.

Average employment of surviving establishments, March 1994–March 2017
Month Average employment per establishment Employment Number of business establishments

Mar 1994

7.3 4,132,450 569,419

Mar 1995

9.1 4,140,239 453,134

Mar 1996

10.3 4,012,051 387,868

Mar 1997

11.4 3,947,376 345,155

Mar 1998

12.5 3,862,645 309,084

Mar 1999

13.2 3,721,580 282,484

Mar 2000

14.2 3,655,305 257,488

Mar 2001

14.9 3,506,596 236,094

Mar 2002

15.0 3,276,821 218,171

Mar 2003

15.3 3,117,464 203,484

Mar 2004

15.8 3,025,551 191,428

Mar 2005

16.4 2,962,831 180,909

Mar 2006

16.9 2,914,145 172,805

Mar 2007

17.5 2,856,566 163,477

Mar 2008

17.9 2,772,210 154,939

Mar 2009

17.5 2,535,759 145,109

Mar 2010

17.7 2,421,364 136,978

Mar 2011

18.4 2,403,881 130,986

Mar 2012

19.1 2,399,386 125,354

Mar 2013

19.8 2,383,994 120,593

Mar 2014

20.5 2,372,009 115,619

Mar 2015

21.2 2,355,817 111,183

Mar 2016

21.9 2,339,019 106,785

Mar 2017

22.7 2,320,271 102,360

From March 1995 to March 2017, average employment per surviving establishment steadily increased from 9.1 to 22.7. In March 2017, in comparison to business establishments that first opened in March 1994, employment decreased by 1,812,179 and the number of establishments decreased by 467,059.

These data are from the Business Employment Dynamics program. Also see charts related to the latest "Business Employment Dynamics" news release.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, 18 percent of businesses opening in March 1994 remained open as of March 2017 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2018/18-percent-of-businesses-opening-in-march-1994-remained-open-as-of-march-2017.htm (visited March 29, 2024).

OF INTEREST
spotlight
Recent editions of Spotlight on Statistics


triangle