Interest in small business startups in Saskatoon increasing despite economic uncertainty

Starting a small business is risky at the best of times and riskier still during economic uncertainty — but that doesn't seem to be scaring entrepreneurs in Saskatoon.

There's been growing interest in starting small businesses in Saskatoon during the last couple of years despite continuous economic challenges from COVID-19, according to Alex Fallon, president and CEO of the Saskatoon Regional Economic Development Authority.

"In these times of economic uncertainty, which COVID brought, you actually see interest go up in entrepreneurship," he told CBC Radio's Saskatoon Morning.

There has been "an absolute increase" of people coming to his development agency with small business ideas and looking for help to make them a reality, Fallon said.

The latest available data from the development authority's economic recovery tracker also seems to suggest people are interested in starting new ventures.

The tracker reported 7,944 active businesses in Saskatoon as of November 2021 — which is actually up from 7,867 in December 2019, just before the pandemic began.

Fallon says the ideas for new businesses his agency is hearing about include home-based startups, restaurants, retail stores and even engineering firms that want to start a smaller company.

"I think most people you talk to would be surprised that entrepreneurship has gone up. But actually, it's a very common, almost a proven, economic model," said Fallon.

"You see it not just in Saskatoon. You see it across the world in different economies."

There are a few different reasons people may want to start a small business during times of economic uncertainty, according to Fallon.

People might be concerned about losing their job and looking for other opportunities, or someone in the household may have lost their job and needs to find another source of income. It could also be as simple as needing a change.

Regardless of the reason, Fallon said when one sector or type of business struggles, it opens the door for new opportunities.

For example, he said, online shopping became very common during the pandemic. While many brick-and-mortar stores struggled or even shut down, it provided an opportunity for online-based business to flourish.

"The economy is always adjusting. When one thing is up, one thing is down. When something is closing, something is starting because someone sees an opportunity," said Fallon.