TD Bank Small Business Pulse Check Finds Fewer Metro Philadelphia Businesses Negatively Impacted by U.S. Economy

CHERRY HILL, N.J., Dec. 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank^®, has announced the results of its second annual Small Business Pulse Check, a regionally focused survey that includes questions on the challenges and opportunities facing small businesses in the Greater Philadelphia area. TD Bank asked small business owners in the tri-state area about their revenue goals for 2014 and 2015, hiring expectations, financing needs and the influence of the U.S. economy on their business.

The TD Bank Small Business Pulse Check polled more than 250 small business owners with revenue of $5 million or less in seven South Jersey counties (Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem), five Pennsylvania counties (Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Philadelphia and Montgomery) and the state of Delaware.

This year's results found that nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of local small business owners expect to meet or exceed their projected revenue performance by year-end 2014, up from 69 percent in 2013. More importantly, significantly fewer Philadelphia business owners (47 percent) feel the national economy has had a negative impact on their business over the past year compared with 2013 (56 percent). With lingering economic fears subsiding, 54 percent of Philadelphia small business owners are projecting revenue and sales growth next year, compared with only 48 percent of those surveyed in 2013.

"Philadelphia area small business owners are more confident in their operations than they were at this time last year," said Mike Carbone, Regional President for TD Bank, metro Philadelphia market. "While the impact of the U.S. economy remains on the mind of many small business owners, they are more optimistic than in recent years and looking forward to growing and investing in their businesses in 2015."

What's in Store for 2015?
Not only are metro Philadelphia small business owners expecting to see revenue and sales growth, but according to the survey 62 percent are optimistic and excited about their business opportunities for 2015. Thirteen percent of business owners even indicated 2015 might be their best year to date.

While businesses continue to streamline costs in 2015, 33 percent of small business owners surveyed said expanding their product or service offering is next year's top priority and will be essential to revenue growth plans.

Financing Needs
To help fuel this growth, 20 percent of local small business owners have applied or are planning to apply for a loan or line of credit in the next 12 months. Of those business owners with credit needs, nearly half (48 percent) are seeking financing for working capital support, followed by cash flow (42 percent) and product /equipment costs (40 percent).

The majority of small business owners (82 percent) indicated they would go to their primary financial institution if they were in need of additional credit or financing.  

"Despite misconceptions that banks are no longer lending to small businesses, we are seeing that Philadelphia area business owners are turning to their primary financial institutions instead of alternative lenders for their credit needs," said Carbone. "TD Bank is committed to helping metro Philadelphia business owners grow in 2015 with affordable and safe financing options."

Additional Survey Findings

• Male-owned small businesses in the Philadelphia metro area are three times as likely to have applied in the past 12 months or plan to apply in the coming year for a loan than small businesses owned by a female.
• When it comes to credit/financing needs, 54 percent of male-owned small business owners would use the funds for working capital vs. 67 percent of female-owned business owners that said they would use the funds for product /equipment costs.
• Despite 2015 revenue and sales growth plans, 69 percent of Philadelphia businesses plan to keep staffing levels the same.

Survey Methodology
The study was conducted among a representative group of small business owners from the Philadelphia area, Southern New Jersey and Delaware between Nov. 10 and 19, 2014. Included were small businesses of $5 million or less in revenue and 100 employees or less. The sample size of 254 has a margin of error of +/- 6.1%. The survey was hosted by global research company Vision Critical.

About TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank®
TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is one of the 10 largest banks in the U.S., providing more than 8 million customers with a full range of retail, small business and commercial banking products and services at approximately 1,300 convenient locations throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Metro D.C., the Carolinas and Florida. In addition, TD Bank and its subsidiaries offer customized private banking and wealth management services through TD Wealth®, and vehicle financing and dealer commercial services through TD Auto Finance. TD Bank is headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J. To learn more, visit www.tdbank.com. Find TD Bank on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TDBank and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TDBank_US.

TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is a member of TD Bank Group and a subsidiary of The Toronto-Dominion Bank of Toronto, Canada, a top 10 financial services company in North America. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges under the ticker symbol "TD". To learn more, visit www.td.com.  

About Vision Critical
Vision Critical provides a cloud-based customer intelligence platform that helps companies build engaged, secure communities of customers they can use continuously, across the enterprise, for ongoing, real-time feedback and insight.

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SOURCE TD Bank

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