Last year was good for new business, says report

Published in the weekly electronic newsletter of the Piraeus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the data showed that a total of 63,000 new businesses opened last year. 

This was an increase of 11% compared to 2023, in which 58,200 new businesses were founded. This increase serves to confirm that the Greek economy has entered a recovery phase and that business people do not hesitate to launch new ventures in the new market conditions, shedding some of the caution that followed the exit from the memorandums and the decade-plus crisis. 

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in his first Facebook post in the new year, stressed that 2024 was a landmark for business. 

The numbers show a clear progression from the previous five years: In 2020, 42,000 new business start-ups were recorded. In 2021 startups increased to 46,400, rising again in 2022 to reach 51,300 and again in 2023, to 58,200. In 2024, this figure rose to 63,000 new businesses, which is a 50% increase compared to 2020. This performance is a record, with business activity returning to levels existing before the recession, during which thousands of businesses had folded. 

The ratio of new businesses to those that are closing was also impressive. In 2024, about 22,200 businesses closed, down 11% relative to 2023, when shutdowns had risen to 25,000. Based on the data, for every business that closed, three new businesses opened, revealing the dynamic development of the business environment.

AA