Entrepreneurs contribute to communities as well as economies—in a big way

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tony Malandra, Senior Media Manager, anthony.malandra@nfib.org

BOISE, Idaho Nov. 20, 2024—Small Business Saturday is coming up November 30, but a new report released yesterday showed how much Main Street enterprises are of value to communities as well as to local economies.

“Most of us have a friend, family member, or neighbor who owns a small business, and so we know their energies and contributions are not confined to the four walls of their enterprise. They are out in the community doing great things for everyone every day, and our report puts some numbers behind the yeoman’s service they are providing,” said Suzanne Budge, Idaho state director for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), whose Research Center produced the 2024 Small Businesses’ Contribution to the Community report.

According to the nationwide survey:

• “About three-quarters (76 percent) of all small business owners reported volunteering their time to work on behalf of civic groups, charities, youth sports programs, schools, religious organizations, or similar activities in the last 12 months.

• “Financial support was the most common method small businesses used to support their communities … Ninety percent of small business owners have financially supported community or civic groups, charities, youth sports programs, schools, religious organization, or similar activities in the last 12 months.

• “Sixty-three percent of small business owners reported providing in-kind contributions … (e.g., providing a meetings space for a local fundraiser, donating excess inventory for a cause, offering auction items to raise money, etc.).”

The report also looked at the groups of activities small businesses are part of. The report is a national snapshot of NFIB-member, small-business owners not broken down by state. The typical NFIB member employs between one and nine people and reports gross sales of about $500,000 a year.

“It would be great to see every Idahoan show their appreciation for the small business owners of the state, who are the central threads of every community, by making November 30 the best Small Business Saturday in the event’s 15-year history,” said Budge. “They’ll need all the help they can get, especially if Congress fails to make permanent the 20% Small Business Deduction, which has kept many enterprises solvent. It would be a shame to see it expire at the end of 2025.”

Keep up with the latest Idaho small-business news at www.nfib.com/idaho, where this news release can also be found, or by following us on X @NFIB_ID

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For 80 years, NFIB has been advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals. NFIB is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, and member-driven association. Since our founding in 1943, NFIB has been exclusively dedicated to small and independent businesses and remains so today. For more information, please visit nfib.com.

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