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CCI Index: French entrepreneurs remain optimistic despite inflation and decline in funding
Despite an economic climate not completely conducive to growth, young French entrepreneurs who started their businesses less than five years ago remain optimistic, according to a study by OpinionWay, conducted for SKEMA Business School and Challenges. The results of the study were presented at the SKEMA Entrepreneurship Summit last March.
The study was led by Philippe Chéreau, director of SKEMA Ventures, the accelerator-incubator of SKEMA, and Pierre-Xavier Meschi, a researcher and lecturer at SKEMA Business School, in collaboration with OpinionWay. In this extensive survey, about a thousand founders of young French companies were interviewed, covering diverse sectors of activities and major French regions. A first. The current environment – high inflation, slowed economic growth, and a decline in startup funding – has slightly affected the optimism of new entrepreneurs, but their morale remains high in general. The Business Creators Confidence Index (CCI) has indeed moderately declined, moving from 71 at the end of 2021 to 68.4 at present.
Solid prospects for success
Young entrepreneurs have perceived a deterioration in their image among public opinion and the government, as well as less support from the ecosystem surrounding them. However, their "self-assessed capacity for resilience" remains strong at 79.6, and they continue to view their prospects for success positively.
According to Philippe Chéreau, "support and mutual aid among peers are the most powerful engine for maintaining entrepreneurs' confidence." The professor of strategy and entrepreneurship and director of SKEMA Ventures strongly recommends that those wishing to embark on an entrepreneurial adventure "surround themselves and exchange with their peers at all stages, sharing obstacles, mistakes, solutions, and tips."
Three distinct categories
Among the entrepreneurs surveyed, three categories stand out as being particularly motivated and confident: the "mission-driven entrepreneurs", whose goal is to have an environmental or societal impact; the super-innovative entrepreneurs, offering disruptive innovation; and the internationally oriented entrepreneurs, who envision a "global destiny for their product."
