THE ENTREPRENEURIAL

SPIRIT IN THE U.S.

REMAINS STRONG
ACCORDING TO THE 2020 AMERICAN EXPRESS
ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT TRENDEX
SMALL AND MID-SIZED BUSINESS OWNERS CONFIRM THE STRENGTH
OF ENTREPRENEURIALISM

75 %

say they are optimistic about

82
feel they are better
%

their business’s recovery * prepared to handle

a future crisis*

2019 2020

DESPITE CHALLENGES, When asked what the top benefits are...

ENTREPRENEURS STILL
LOVE THEIR JOB 88 %

being their
The survey reveals that despite own boss*
the economic downturn...
89 %

financial stability*

81
still believe
% $
86 %

turning a
passion
the benefits
of owning their
into a 85 %

business* flexibility
own business
outweigh the to set their
challenges* own hours*

PIVOT. PIVOT. PIVOT.

‘Pivot’ may be the latest buzzword in business and for good reason.
Since the start of the pandemic...

76
Among those that already
% pivoted, 73% expect to
pivot again in the next year*

of business owners

7 10
have pivoted or are
in the process of pivoting
their business model
to maintain revenue*
IN

A LOOK AHEAD
Business owners have many priorities on the road to recovery, including:

86
obtaining
%
84
maintaining and
%
81
managing
%
77
offering their
%

customers* growing their current cash flow products/

business and sources issues* services
of revenue* online*

WHAT CONSUMERS EXPECT

Business owners need to know that when The top categories where consumers
consumers are choosing where to spend spent and plan to spend include:
their money, they look for businesses
PRE-PANDEMIC /
that prioritize... POST-PANDEMIC

76 %
74 % TRAVEL*

39 /
44 %
%

+5
employee local* %

wellbeing*
ENTERTAINMENT*

68 %
64 % 41 /
40 %
%

-1
%

community sustainability*
donations* BARS/
RESTAURANTS*

49 /
52 %
%
-3
%

CLOTHING/
ACCESSORIES*

54 /
46 %
%
-8
%

AMERICAN EXPRESS ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT TRENDEX METHODOLOGY:

*
Findings are based on results of two separate online surveys. The first survey was conducted among 1,000 small- and mid-sized business
owners in the United States whose revenue ranges from $500K-$300M.The small- and mid-sized business owner survey was weighted to
be representative of US census regions. The second survey was conducted among a nationally representative sample of 1,000 Americans
18 years of age and older living in the United States. The surveys were conducted and completed by a third-party vendor between
September 8-23, 2020. The margin of error (MOE) for the total sample at the 95% confidence level is +/- 3 percentage points.