Virginia startups face tough odds
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Virginia ranks in the bottom 10 of states where new businesses make it to their fifth year, per the latest federal data.
Why it matters: Keeping a new business alive is no small feat — and it's getting even harder amid the government shutdown for companies that rely on federal contracts or aid, Axios' Madison Mills reports.
State of play: Nationwide, a little over half of new businesses make it to year five, the data shows.
- In Virginia, just 47.7% of newbies survive that long.
Zoom out: West Virginia (57.6%), Connecticut (57.5%), and Alaska and Pennsylvania (both 56%) have the highest five-year business survival rates among U.S. states.
- Washington (41.1%), Missouri (43.2%) and Washington, D.C. (44.7%) have the lowest.
How it works: That's based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data tracking businesses that opened in the year ending March 2019 and remained open as of March 2024, the latest available data.
Context: Most of these businesses were in the critical early stage when the pandemic hit. Virginia was among the dozens of states that had temporary business opening restrictions in place in 2020.
Go deeper: Where Americans are starting new businesses