Small businesses don’t just power the U.S. economy—they power families, communities, and the dreams of people who bet on themselves. Whether you launched from a spare bedroom, a kitchen table, or a cleared-out garage, you’ve already done what most people only talk about. In this post, we’re celebrating Small Business with eye-opening facts about entrepreneurship in America—and sharing practical, credit-smart tips to help you strengthen your business’s financial foundation, build credible business credit, and keep moving from “surviving” to truly thriving.

Every huge company in America was once a small business. Whether started in the spare bedroom, at the kitchen table, or by clearing out the garage, they fought through the school of hard knocks and sleepless nights to get where they are today, and are likely still facing daily hard knocks and sleepless nights.

READ MORE: Stop Bootstrapping And Start Building A Business Credit Blueprint

Unlike those who set aside a special month or weekend or day, we celebrate small business every day because 90% of our customers are those glassy-eyed and exhausted entrepreneurs, who revel every day in the fact that they are their own boss and are in control of their own destiny. If you don’t already own a small business – chances are – you work for one!

For small business owners everywhere, here are some tidbits you may not have known about yourselves:

• Small business is defined as having 500 or fewer employees

• There are 28 million small businesses in the U.S.

• Average revenue for a small business is in the $44,000 bracket

• Small businesses outnumber corporations 1162 to 1

• 70% of small businesses are owned and operated by a single person

• 57% of America’s workforce is from small business

• Small businesses pay 44% of all U.S. payroll

• Only 50% of businesses survive five years

• 70% of small business survive two-years

• Immigrants make up 12.5% of small business owners nationwide

• Since 1990, small businesses have added 8 million new jobs

• In 2009, a small business went bankrupt every 8 minutes

• One third of small businesses rely on credit for financing

• Only 2% of small businesses are franchises

• 54% of small businesses are home-based

• Up to 80% of all new jobs come from small business

• Approximately 543,000 new businesses are started each month

• 52 percent of companies found new customers on Facebook

• It takes 107 days to start a business in Brazil

• Total revenue from all American small businesses is $989.6 billion

Keeping your small business strong and creditworthy starts with protecting the fundamentals lenders and vendors measure first: consistent, verifiable business identity and predictable cash flow. Make sure your legal business name, address, phone, website, and email match everywhere (Secretary of State, IRS, bank, invoices, and online listings), because mismatches can slow approvals and disrupt reporting. Then run your business like a “separate entity” every day—dedicated business bank account, clean bookkeeping, and a cash-flow routine that prioritizes payroll, taxes, and vendor payments. With many small businesses operating lean and a large share relying on credit to finance growth, the businesses that stay fundable are the ones that can document stability quickly and clearly.

READ MORE: The Invisible Score: A Small Business Owner’s Guide to Monitoring and Maintaining Business Credit

Next, build business credit on purpose—don’t wait until you “need” it. Start with vendors that report, add your existing payment history to the commercial credit bureaus as soon as you can, keep utilization low on revolving accounts, and pay early whenever possible to strengthen your payment profile. Limit unnecessary applications, monitor your files with Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax for errors or duplicates, and correct issues immediately so your positive history actually counts. Finally, reduce risk signals that underwriters flag: keep your business information current, maintain adequate insurance where appropriate, and avoid mixing personal and business expenses. The goal is simple: make your company easy to verify, easy to underwrite, and consistently on-time—so credit becomes a tool for growth instead of a last-minute emergency.

My company offers free tips and tricks (and yes, even free one-on-one consultations) to help small business owners better understand their business credit report so they can grow and achieve their dreams. The information is available on our website, blog, and bi-monthly newsletters. Or just give me a call so I can help you make adjestments to immediately impact your scores and ratings.

ONE MORE TIP: Request a free consultation and business credit assessment to see if we can help you get to the finish line faster.