Release Date: 06/ 01/ 2005
CONTACT: Bill G. Smith, (608) 255-6083 or Kevin Walter, (614) 221-4107
Wisconsin Small-Business Owners Optimistic for Future
MADISON, June 1, 2005 – Wisconsin’s overall small business climate showed continued improvement over the past three months according to the Wisconsin Small-Business ConditionsSM. The report’s data, which was released today by the National Federation of Independent Business /Wisconsin, provides an overview of small-business conditions within Wisconsin and compares them with neighboring states.
“Wisconsin’s small-business community is playing a major role in the state’s economic growth,” according to Bill G. Smith, NFIB/Wisconsin state director. A net 40 percent described current business conditions as “good,” while a net 19 percent said business conditions were “improving.”
“Small-business owners also are feeling positive about the future,” said Smith, noting a net 68 percent feeling optimistic about the next three months. “The positive attitude of Wisconsin small-business owners led the Midwest and was the sixth highest ranking among the 26 states surveyed when measured nationally.”
Small-business employment has been steady, according to the report, while over the same three-month period capital expenditures, spending on technology upgrades and the number of owners making expenditures for employee training all declined slightly.
Of those surveyed in Wisconsin, a net 23 percent indicated that profits were “good.” A net 43 percent of respondents characterized sales as “good,” second to Iowa (55 percent), but ahead of Illinois (34 percent), Michigan (24 percent) and Minnesota (39 percent). Overall, a net 54 percent of small employers reported that over the last three months their purchasing prices rose, while a net 20 percent reported they had increased selling prices.
When asked to rank their most important business problem, Wisconsin small-business owners ranked insurance as the most serious of all conditions, followed by taxes and competition from big business.
The Small-Business Conditions reports are developed from surveys of small-business owners in selected states. The surveys are designed to determine the condition of the small-business economy in each particular state. The surveys are conducted every three months and results are released on the first day of the month following completion. The text of the questions and the complete response set to the survey can be found at www.NFIB.com/research.
| Wisconsin Small-Business ConditionsSM | ||||||
| This chart shows the results from Wisconsin and its comparative standing among selected nearby states. | ||||||
| Wis. | Ill. | Iowa | Mich. | Minn. | ||
| Business Climate | Survey Date | |||||
| Overall state business environment | ||||||
| Net % supportive of small business | 5/2005 | 31 | 6 | 34 | 7 | 26 |
| Prior qtr. | 22 | 16 | 33 | 18 | 27 | |
| Business conditions in market area | ||||||
| Net % "good" | 5/2005 | 40 | 30 | 45 | 0 | 41 |
| Prior qtr. | 33 | 29 | 37 | 15 | 38 | |
| Net % "improving" | 5/2005 | 19 | 10 | 9 | -4 | 15 |
| Prior qtr. | 10 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 12 | |
| Outlook for business | ||||||
| Net % "good" in next three months | 5/2005 | 68 | 61 | 64 | 52 | 61 |
| Prior qtr. | 66 | 59 | 61 | 55 | 63 | |
| Reason for optimism | ||||||
| % Sales prospects | 5/2005 | 44 | 46 | 41 | 38 | 46 |
| Prior qtr. | 59 | 43 | 42 | 45 | 57 | |
| % Lower costs | 5/2005 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Prior qtr. | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| % Price increases | 5/2005 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Prior qtr. | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | |
| % Greater productivity | 5/2005 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 12 | 13 |
| Prior qtr. | 12 | 13 | 16 | 14 | 15 | |
| % Government policy | 5/2005 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| Prior qtr. | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | |
| Reason for pessimism | ||||||
| % Sales prospects | 5/2005 | IC* | IC | IC | IC | IC |
| Prior qtr. | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC | |
| % Cost increases | 5/2005 | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC |
| Prior qtr. | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC | |
| % Pressure on selling prices | 5/2005 | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC |
| Prior qtr. | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC | |
| % Lower productivity | 5/2005 | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC |
| Prior qtr. | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC | |
| % Government policies | 5/2005 | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC |
| Prior qtr. | IC | IC | IC | IC | IC | |
| Wis. | Ill. | Iowa | Mich. | Minn. | ||
| Sales and earnings (last quarter) | ||||||
| Sales | ||||||
| Net % sales "good" | 5/2005 | 43 | 34 | 55 | 24 | 39 |
| Prior qtr. | 37 | 22 | 44 | 21 | 27 | |
| Profits | ||||||
| Net % profits "good" | 5/2005 | 23 | 15 | 33 | 6 | 23 |
| Prior qtr. | 20 | 9 | 29 | 4 | 12 | |
| Employment | ||||||
| Current job openings (one or more) | ||||||
| % "Yes" | 5/2005 | 20 | 19 | 16 | 16 | 16 |
| Prior qtr. | 19 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 16 | |
| Per employee payroll cost | ||||||
| Net % "risen" | 5/2005 | 12 | 11 | 16 | 11 | 17 |
| Prior qtr. | 23 | 20 | 13 | 12 | 22 | |
| Employee cost pressures (greater) | ||||||
| % Wages | 5/2005 | 53 | 51 | 58 | 52 | 51 |
| Prior qtr. | 52 | 53 | 55 | 49 | 53 | |
| % Benefits | 5/2005 | 33 | 29 | 24 | 30 | 30 |
| Prior qtr. | 35 | 30 | 26 | 31 | 30 | |
| Wis. | Ill. | Iowa | Mich. | Minn. | ||
| Productivity | ||||||
| Upgraded technology/processes (last three months) | ||||||
| % "Yes" | 5/2005 | 41 | 44 | 33 | 39 | 47 |
| Prior qtr. | 46 | 43 | 41 | 45 | 46 | |
| Made capital expenditure(s) (last three months) | ||||||
| % "Yes" | 5/2005 | 41 | 43 | 36 | 39 | 46 |
| Prior qtr. | 55 | 42 | 46 | 41 | 46 | |
| Made expenditure to train employee(s) (last three months) | ||||||
| % "Yes" | 5/2005 | 36 | 40 | 33 | 42 | 41 |
| Prior qtr. | 43 | 43 | 37 | 41 | 47 | |
| Capacity utilization - can increase sales 10% without new inputs | ||||||
| % "Yes" | 5/2005 | 56 | 56 | 53 | 51 | 53 |
| Prior qtr. | 48 | 59 | 51 | 59 | 56 | |
| Credit availability (last three months) | ||||||
| % All credit needs satisfied | 5/2005 | 41 | 41 | 41 | 34 | 43 |
| Prior qtr. | 45 | 36 | 47 | 36 | 35 | |
| % All credit needs not satisfied | 5/2005 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 5 |
| Prior qtr. | 8 | 8 | 5 | 10 | 8 | |
| % No credit needs | 5/2005 | 46 | 46 | 49 | 49 | 43 |
| Prior qtr. | 43 | 52 | 43 | 49 | 52 | |
| Wis. | Ill. | Iowa | Mich. | Minn. | ||
| Prices | ||||||
| Purchasing prices (last three months) | ||||||
| Net % increased | 5/2005 | 54 | 47 | 58 | 50 | 56 |
| Prior qtr. | 58 | 55 | 50 | 60 | 60 | |
| Selling prices (last three months) | ||||||
| Net % increased | 5/2005 | 20 | 17 | 22 | 15 | 19 |
| Prior qtr. | 15 | 18 | 14 | 17 | 21 | |
| Miscellaneous | ||||||
| Involvement in start of another business | ||||||
| % "Yes" | 5/2005 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 |
| Prior qtr. | 9 | 15 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
| Single most important business problem | ||||||
| % Weak sales | 5/2005 | 10 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 13 |
| Prior qtr. | 9 | 10 | 8 | 13 | 12 | |
| % Taxes | 5/2005 | 15 | 15 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| Prior qtr. | 12 | 7 | 9 | 13 | 8 | |
| % Employee quality/costs | 5/2005 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 7 |
| Prior qtr. | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 9 | |
| % Insurance | 5/2005 | 23 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 18 |
| Prior qtr. | 25 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 21 | |
| % Big-business competition | 5/2005 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 14 |
| Prior qtr. | 14 | 11 | 17 | 13 | 17 | |
| % Inflation/Rising prices | 5/2005 | 13 | 13 | 19 | 10 | 14 |
| Prior qtr. | 14 | 16 | 10 | 11 | 13 | |
| % Credit availability/Interest rates | 5/2005 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 |
| Prior qtr. | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | |
| % Regulations/Red tape | 5/2005 | 4 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 7 |
| Prior qtr. | 7 | 9 | 11 | 6 | 8 | |
| Wisconsin Quarterly Spotlight | |
| In what general area of the state budget are reductions MOST warranted? | |
| Education | 14% |
| Transportation and roads | 9% |
| Economic development | 11% |
| Health | 18% |
| Public welfare | 11% |
| Police and corrections | 7% |
| Other | 6% |
| DK/Ref | 25% |
| Total | 100% |
| In what general area of the state budget are reductions LEAST warranted? | |
| Education | 23% |
| Transportation and roads | 13% |
| Economic development | 11% |
| Health | 11% |
| Public welfare | 7% |
| Police and corrections | 9% |
| Other | 1% |
| DK/Ref | 23% |
| Total | 100% |
The Poll
NFIB’s Wisconsin Small-Business ConditionsSM is a telephone survey of a random sample of Wisconsin small employers regarding business conditions within the state. “Small employer” is defined here as employing between one and 250 people (not including the owner(s)) in a for-profit business. Each edition of the survey has a minimum of 350 respondents. The sampling error is ± 5 percentage points. Data are collected quarterly in the months of February, May, August and November, beginning in February 2005. The MRCGroup of Las Vegas conducts the survey for the NFIB Research Foundation.
The Sponsor
The NFIB Research Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) organization that provides policy-makers, media, educators, small-business owners and other interested parties empirically based information on small business and small-business owners. The Foundation is affiliated with the National Federation of Independent Business, the nation’s largest small- and independent-business advocacy organization, and is located in Washington, D.C.
