Entrepreneurial hub: Springfield 6th nationally

The Queen City has become an entrepreneurial hub, according to a new analysis by financial data tracking firm SmartAsset.

SmartAsset examined 151 areas to develop its list of the most entrepreneurial small and midsize metropolitan areas, defined as those with less than 1 million residents. The study examined the percentage of new businesses, the total percentage of businesses with less than 10 employees, small-business loans per 10,000 residents and the percentage of all employees who work in new businesses.

Springfield’s results indicated:
    •    15.9 percent of businesses are new;
    •    73 percent of area workers are employed at small businesses; and
    •    there are 4.9 small-business loans per 10,000 residents.

The Queen City metro area’s overall score out of 100 was 79.7.

“Springfield, Missouri, is the most entrepreneurial of all the Springfields in our study, beating out Springfield, Illinois, as well as Springfield, Massachusetts,” according to the report.

Springfield was the only Missouri city to make the list. At No. 1 was the Provo-Orem metro area in Utah. Rounding out the top five were Cheyenne, Wyoming; Greeley, Colorado; Bismarck, North Dakota; and Rapid City, South Dakota.