According to Companies House data, the UK is on track to deliver around 850,000 company registrations in 2024 – roughly the same as in 2023 which finished on an impressive 859,007. To give you some context, in 2019 670,575 were registered.
And that is despite a hike in registration fees imposed in May 2024, which saw them triple from £12 to £50.
This year we’ve seen a real shift, not in the sectors in which businesses are being started, but more the way they are being run. Generation Z are leading the way with their purposeful and technology-enabled business models that sees them embrace social commerce, curate and market their Substacks and build their community in a completely new way.
January is the big month for starting up. According to Google Trends, the first month of the year is ‘peak entrepreneurship’. Google searches for start a business/start a side hustle are at their highest in January, flatline to September when we get back from our holidays and then build slowly again to the New Year.
It’s the time when we traditionally make new year resolutions and pledge to give up booze and hit the gym. The reality is that starting a business with purpose is also now high on that list and a clear element of people’s future career path.
It’s also why we run the Start Up Show in January. It might be cold outside, but on Saturday January 25, more than 1,500 people bursting with business ideas flock to this event to learn everything they need to know about starting a business.
This year we’ve got the BBC’s Emma Barnett talking about her business Colour my Streets as well as Deepak Ravnidran, founder of Oddbox, Mark Rushmore and Gyve Safavi, co-founders of sustainable toothbrush brand Suri and Chris Baker, co-founder of social enterprise Change Please that helps homeless people retrain as barristas.
The line-up really speaks to this trend of using technology to build and promote brands with purpose.
In 2025 I predict we will see much more of this. Look out for:
The rise of the Tik Tok brands
Tik Tok makes it easy for brands to build a following and sell directly without taking customers away from the comfort of their digital space.
Substack on steroids
There’s been a huge boom in brands using Substack as their marketing vehicle, while also making money from it as well by sharing their knowledge. Note to self.
More Independents on the high street
The pandemic showed us we needed our community, now brands are beginning to jump on this trend. With new powers for local authorities to auction leases on empty shops to the lowest bidder, expect to see more independent shops on your high street.
Technology for good
Technology with a social purpose will be a huge trend with brands making it much easier to use their money to benefit good causes or find the support they need without having to leave home.
Scrubbing up on AI
With rising employment costs on the horizon, more businesses will be exploring the world of hyper automation to ensure data can be shared seamlessly between departments and how artificial intelligence can create efficiencies.
