Distribution / Retail / Wholesale
Key Industry Sectors Examined
Below are percent-based tables that show how the Distribution/Retail/Wholesale sector differs from the national norm (the average of all sectors studied) in The Guardian Life Index: What Matters Most to America’s Small Business Owners. These two tables report small business owners’ revenue expectations for 2009 and projected business plans over the next two years.
Percent-based findings refer to the percentage of survey respondents who gave a particular answer.
2008 – 2009 Revenue Projections
Compared to 2008, what do you anticipate your revenues will be for 2009?
| Response | Distribution/Retail/Wholesale | Norm | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| More than 25% greater than 2008 | 5% | 6% | -1% |
| 10% - 20% greater than 2008 | 10% | 12% | -2% |
| Up to 10% greater than 2008 | 12% | 15% | -3% |
| About the same as 2008 | 24% | 27% | -3% |
| Up to 10% lower than 2008 | 20% | 16% | 4% |
| Up to 10% - 25% lower than 2008 | 20% | 17% | 3% |
| More than 25% lower than 2008 | 10% | 8% | 2% |
Projected Business Plans
Which of the following best captures the plan for your business over the next 12-24 months?
| Response | Distribution/Retail/Wholesale | Norm | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maintain business as usual | 54% | 54% | 0% |
| Plan to expand the business | 33% | 38% | -5% |
| Plan to downsize the business | 12% | 8% | 4% |
| Actively looking for someone to manage the business |
3% | 3% | 0% |
| Actively looking to sell the business | 6% | 5% | 1% |
| Looking to turn over the business to a family member |
4% | 2% | 2% |
| -3% Looking to merge my business with another company |
3% | 4% | -1% |
| Looking to transform the business in some major way |
10% | 11% | -1% |
Below is an intensity-based table and corresponding radar chart that highlight how the Distribution/Retail/Wholesale sector differs most from the national norm(the average of all sectors studied) in The Guardian Life Index: What Matters Most to America’s Small Business Owners regarding the three core pillars of business success:
- My customers
- My employees
- And myself
Intensity-based findings (i.e., 3.5 or -3.5) refer to the level of intensity expressed by survey respondents on a 21-point scale (+10, the highest positive answer, 0, neutral, and -10, the lowest negative answer). In this innovative research model, a half-point (0.5) difference is considered significant. Only clearly held values regarding “family, friends, God and religion” consistently score eight and above.
| Question/Response | Distribution/Retail/Wholesale | Norm | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| What are the most rewarding and most frustrating things about owning your own business? Customers who appreciate what we do |
5.5 | 5.8 | -0.3 |
| What matters most to you in Business? Keeping the customers we have from leaving |
5.9 | 5.6 | 0.3 |
| How does each of the following matter to your business? My employees |
4.3 | 5.5 | -1.2 |
| What are the most rewarding and most frustrating things about owning your own business? Freedom |
5.0 | 5.3 | -0.3 |
| Below is a list of reasons that may or may not have lead you to owning or running your company. How are these things changing for you? Being able to make my own decisions |
4.1 | 4.9 | -0.8 |
| What are the most rewarding and most frustrating things about owning your own business? Quality of my staff |
4.2 | 4.7 | -0.5 |
