Next 1000: The Final Installment | Forbes Best Small Business Stories Of 2021 | The Future Of Small Business Lending

Plus: State Of Small Business: What Recent Surveys Say At End Of 2021

As we mark the end of yet another unprecedentedly challenging year for small businesses, Forbes last week unveiled the fourth and final installment of its 2021 Next 1000. The list serves as a testament to the founders, creators and innovators who are redefining what it means to build and run a business today. It also seeks to illustrate not just the diversity of people who are excelling in small business, but the diversity of paths to success. 

Those named to the latest installment include Ramunda Young, the cofounder of MahoganyBooks, a bookstore specializing in books written by, for or about the African Diaspora. Also on the Next 1000 list are Cynthia Plotch, the cofounder of women’s health startup Stix, and Tanya Van Court, the founder of kids’ personal finance platform Goalsetter. Both have defied the odds by raising millions of dollars in funding amid the coronavirus crisis.

But not all small business owners have been so lucky. In 2021 alone, the U.S. Small Business Administration oversaw nearly $417 billion in emergency relief to more than six million small businesses. “Small businesses once again showed their grit and determination as they looked to survive the pandemic and either reimagine their business or adapt to ensure that they could continue to serve their communities and customers,” SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman tells my colleague, Maneet Ahuja. For the full 2021 Next 1000 list, click here.

Below I’ve highlighted some of the year’s top small business stories. Resilience, you’ll see, is a recurring theme, as is adaptability. 

Have a happy and safe holiday season. See you in 2022!

Thanks for reading and you can follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn. 

"Entrepreneurial talent and great ideas have always been equally distributed, but opportunity has not. For the industry to really shift, other investors need to get outside their bubbles and meet founders where they are."

Steve Case

Cofounder, AOL, Chairman and CEO, Revolution

Must Reads

Forbes launched its inaugural Next 1000 list in 2021 as a year-round initiative to showcase ambitious sole proprietors, self-funded shops and pre-revenue startups across the country. Accompanying the first installment of 250 honorees was this data-driven story that takes a look at the numbers behind the list.

As part of Forbes’ partnership with Mika Brzezinski and her “Know Your Value” initiative to spotlight women over the age of 50 who are changing the world, my colleague Maggie McGrath highlighted those helping to safeguard the country’s small businesses. From Andrea Jung to Suzanne Clark, these are the women working to save Main Street America. 

This past year has been one of the most challenging for small businesses, but one silver lining is the increased attention that’s been paid to capital access. In addition to the Paycheck Protection Program and other government aid provided during the pandemic, several fintech companies have stepped in to offer small business lending, according to my colleague Jonathan Ponciano. Here’s a look at the future of small business lending. 

Small business owners were blindsided by Covid-19, and while many were forced to adapt or shutter, there was also an unprecedented entrepreneurial explosion. As my colleague Maneet Ahuja wrote, the pandemic spawned more than 4 million new businesses. Here is how high unemployment rates not seen since the Great Depression coupled with access to fresh sources of capital through fintech and other factors led to a historic number of Americans betting on themselves and launching their own companies. 

This small business series illustrating the five stages of small business growth—existence, survival, success, take-off and resource maturity—features expert insights and real-life examples. From launching a business to determining product fit and customer acquisition, all steps are covered. 

Josh Silverman is using cutting-edge technology to transform Etsy from a hippie flea market into a Wall Street hero—without losing its soul. The 16-year-old company—which many small business owners rely on as a platform to sell their products—is worth just shy of $30 billion. My colleague Steven Bertoni writes that active buyers and sellers on Etsy have doubled to 90 million and 5 million, respectively. 

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