Following reports that 17m Brits are sitting on a business concept, new research has found that most aspiring entrepreneurs wait years before putting their idea into action.
Research from NatWest suggested 30% of those harboring entrepreneurial tendencies plan to turn their idea into a business, and more than a quarter (26%) plan to do it within the next year.
However, as research from the Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) has shown, good intentions are not always acted upon.
According to the report, of those who expect to start a business within 12 months, only one in seven actually get round to it.
Six years after having a business idea, only a third of potential business owners have done anything about it.
‘People who are older and male tend to take less time to get from aspiring entrepreneur to actually starting a new business venture,’ according to report author Professor Andrew Henley.
Henley’s findings suggest ageing by five years increases the likelihood of starting a business within a year of having the idea by 2% - a woman however, is 2% less likely.
Employment status plays a big role in the likelihood of seeing an idea through to development stage, the report also found.
Half of those who have an idea while unemployed set up their business within a year, compared to only 14% of those in paid employment, suggesting it is time – not a steady income – that budding entrepreneurs need more of to turn their idea into an actual business.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2007
