A new study has found that nearly six in 10 (59 per cent) small business owners loaned personal money to their business during the pandemic to help it survive.
Research undertaken by one of Europe’s largest small business lenders, iwoca, showed that many owners had taken drastic steps during the pandemic to support their business.
Despite this, many owners are still worried about the viability of their business with more than a third (38 per cent) concerned about closing this year.
A similar survey conducted among UK accountants during the same period, representing more than 23,000 small businesses, has indicated what the most important issues are for their clients currently.
The first priority highlighted by the survey was the need to make sure businesses were well funded to deal with future disruption.
Ensuring invoices were paid was the second-biggest priority according to the study, with 48 per cent of respondents highlighting this issue.
Taking lessons from the last year, around a third of the firms surveyed said that diversifying product offerings would be key for businesses in the coming year, while 26 per cent believe that transitioning to online sales and services would be key.
When SME owners were asked the same question, 60 per cent said they will focus on ensuring they are well-funded but four in 10 small business owners still expect to need to use their own money to finance their business during the next 12 months.
Link: Majority of small businesses used personal money to stay afloat last year
