68% of SMEs feel more positive about business growth, survey finds
Some 35% of respondents said supply chain and stock availability was the biggest challenge facing their business over the next year
Some 68% of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are feeling more positive about their business growth opportunities when compared to last year, according to Alibaba.com’s B2B Sentiment Survey.
According to the survey, which had more than 500 SMEs participate across the country, found that of this 68%, 19% described their outlook as “significantly more positive”.
However, despite this strong level of optimism, nearly half (47%) of UK SME decision-makers surveyed cited inflationary pressures as their biggest challenge facing their business over the next year, and a further 37% highlighted marketing and customer acquisition.
Meanwhile, some 35% of respondents said supply chain and stock availability was the biggest challenge facing their business over the next year, while 69% said finding new suppliers was a priority in 2024.
As a result, the study suggests that building relationships with new suppliers is a daunting prospect for the majority of UK SMEs, with 64% agreeing that building trust with new suppliers is one of their business’ greatest challenges.
Jijay Shen, general manager of Alibaba.com Europe, said: “It’s encouraging to see that UK SMEs are feeling much more positive about their growth prospects compared to last year. However, our research also sheds light on some of the sourcing and supply chain issues that could prevent businesses from fulfilling their growth ambitions.
“At Alibaba.com, we’re focused on making digital, cross-border purchasing as seamless as possible. We are optimising and streamlining the entire sourcing journey for SMEs, enabling them to mitigate supply chain challenges and focus on what’s most important – growing their business.”
