UK tech start-ups remain overwhelmingly confident despite government’s ‘awful’ handling of Brexit, according to Studio Graphene’s independent research.
More than 100 UK-based technology start-ups took part in the survey, and headline findings include:
79% of UK tech businesses are either ‘very confident’ (39%) or ‘confident’ (40%) they will increase their turnover over the coming 12 months.
In the next year, 91% plan to hire more staff, 67% intend to expand into new overseas territories, and 66% will seek investment.
Hiring the right talent was cited as the most common challenge tech start-ups are facing – 60% foresee this being an issue in the year ahead.
This was followed by increasing sales (58%), securing investment (44%) and enhancing their product or service (25%).
Brexit is also a cause for concern among the majority of the early stage businesses.
53% think Brexit will make growth more difficult, compared with 12% who predict leaving the EU will make it easier.
88% say the Government’s handling of Brexit has been ‘awful’ (65%) or ‘poor’ (23%).
Ritam Gandhi, Founder and Director of Studio Graphene, commented: “The UK’s tech start-ups are among the very best in the world, but this isn’t something we should take for granted. We have launched our quarterly UK Tech Tracker Survey to explore confidence levels among these businesses and also to better understand the challenges that stand in front of them.
“The Q1 2019 UK Tech Tracker Survey shows that even Brexit chaos cannot derail the optimism of tech entrepreneurs in this country, which is to be celebrated. But it also illustrates that raising investment and hiring talent are key concerns among tech firms. That’s why it’s vital both the government and private sector work together to ensure these obstacles are addressed and, ultimately, that Britain’s exciting early stage businesses get the support they need.”
