In 2023, the number of retail and logistics companies grew rapidly in the SME sector

Adaptation to changing economic conditions, restoration of demand and “reassembly” of logistics have changed the priorities of entrepreneurs when registering small and medium-sized companies, according to SPARK-Interfax analytics. A boom in the number of registrations is being recorded this year in retail trade, and the number of organizations in the field of transportation and storage is also growing. But the analyst does not record a noticeable increase in the number of established manufacturing companies in the SME sector – perhaps, also because the authorities’ attention is focused on supporting already operating enterprises that are able to demonstrate specific work results and compliance with certain criteria.

The transition of business from force majeure adaptation to recovery growth affected industry priorities when registering SMEs, as follows from the analytics of the SPARK-Interfax system available to Kommersant. A boom in the number of companies created this year is being recorded in the retail trade sector: in nine months compared to the same period in 2022, it has grown by 70%. Interest in retail is explained by the recovery in consumer demand due to rising real incomes and increased volumes of unsecured loans. However, most likely, this sector will become less attractive in the future – the opportunities for SMEs in this industry are limited by the accelerated development of large players.

An analysis of the number of registrations also reveals the interest of entrepreneurs in the field of transportation and storage. It is associated with the need to solve logistics problems that have arisen due to the reorientation of supplies to the markets of friendly countries and a turn to the East, which requires serious investments in the transport sector (see Kommersant on December 6). The growth drivers here were road freight transportation and warehousing operations: the increase in the number of business registrations in these industries in January-September amounted to 70% and 59%, respectively. According to SPARK analysts, the sector will remain one of the priorities in the future: “the processes launched by the challenges of transformation in the transportation sector are only gaining strength.”

The IT sector became the leader in terms of the intensity of creation of new SMEs per 1 thousand companies over the nine months of 2023 (95 registrations, see chart). Analysts predict that the attractiveness of this industry, characterized by high financial stability and low levels of loan delinquencies, will continue in the coming years.

Let us note that the SPARK-Interfax analyst does not record a significant increase in the number of registrations of SME manufacturing companies. The industrial sector is not among the top either in the intensity of company creation or in the share of the total number of registrations, despite the fact that the authorities, given the departure of foreign suppliers and the lack of their own technologies, are showing the greatest interest in this sector (see Kommersant on October 24). However, it is known that the government is more focused on supporting already operating companies rather than new ones. Assistance measures are more concentrated on those who can already demonstrate performance results and meet certain numerical criteria (for example, revenue). These include small technology companies and enterprises in the SME+ category (which have outgrown the sector; see Kommersant on October 26 and November 10).

Kristina Borovikova