Briefing: Small business in Worcester
A personal finance website recently ranked Worcester as the best of the largest cities in New England in which to start a small business. But to put that in perspective: Worcester ranked 96th out of 150 U.S. cities.
The website, WalletHub, released a report in late April on the potential for startup success in those cities. Worcester topped Boston (115th) and Providence (135th), and it was second in the Northeast to Buffalo, N.Y., which ranked 65th.
Does this give the city any bragging rights?
A little. It's a big world out there for small businesses, and it turns out that Worcester occupies a relatively small corner of it, according to the survey results.
Cities in the South, the Midwest — pretty much anywhere in the U.S. but the Northeast — did better on welcoming entrepreneurship. Worcester even came out ahead of New York City which, for all its bustle, ranked 105th.
The top five finishers on the WalletHub list: Shreveport, La., followed by Tulsa, Okla., Springfield, Mo., Chattanooga, Tenn. and Jackson, Miss.
How were the ratings compiled?
WalletHub evaluated each of the 150 most populous U.S. cities in two categories: access to resources (financing, affordable office space, number of educated employees, and labor costs); and overall business environment (taxes, cost of living, small-business friendliness and five-year business survival rate).
Worcester ranked 67th on access to business, but near the bottom — 140th — on overall business environment.
Can the local small-business environment improve?
Worcester and state officials are working on several fronts to ease the way for entrepreneurs. Gov. Charlie Baker's administration appears committed to studying and detangling the slate of business-related regulations. One of the early acts of his administration in January was a three-month freeze on new regulations.
In Worcester, a conversation over the last several years among business leaders, residents and the city has led to a narrowing of the gap between commercial and residential tax rates. And Mayor Joseph Petty recently announced the formation of a 17-member panel to review tax policy and develop long-term recommendations. Meanwhile, the downtown is undergoing a development renaissance. And public schools, as well as the state's colleges and universities, are taking strong and thoughtful steps to connect curriculum and student opportunities to the state's workplace needs.
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