2016 will bring challenges for small businesses, says FSB

The New Year will bring “new challenges and opportunities” for small businesses, according to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). John Allan, national chairman of the FSB, revealed his expectations for small businesses in 2016 in a statement.

Allan said that 2016 will be a “year of decisions, debate and change” and stated that small business owners are “flexible and ready to adapt.”

Diverse

Allan also discussed how business is increasingly being conducted online and that the entrepreneurs leading it are “more diverse than ever before.”

He stated that the expectations of small business owners are changing and that they want greater support and advice.

Speaking about the role of the FSB, which is a UK-based organisation that supports small businesses, Allan said: “We can’t just be the voice of small business anymore – they want us to be experts in business too – offering more advice, further support and taking greater leadership on the issues which matter to them. This is the sort of ongoing change any successful business needs to take in its stride.”

Change

Allan went on to discuss new policies that may affect small businesses, such as the National Living Wage, small business rollout of the workplace pension, the introduction of the apprenticeship levy, and changes to dividend taxation.

He went on to state that the business environment will “always change” and that good businesses are “well used to dealing with whatever is thrown at them.”

“No change or challenge is insurmountable. Indeed in 2015 small businesses continued to show consistently high levels of confidence about the future – both in terms of future business growth and in their plans to hire new people,” he said.

Mr Allan added that whatever change the New Year brings, small businesses are “well set” to meet the challenge.