Creating a trade enterprise Initial investment higher than in other sectors

In 2014, 108,000 enterprises were created in the trade sector. The majority were created with auto-entrepreneur status. Of the other 51,000 “conventional” enterprises, two thirds were incorporated. In relation to the population, these new conventional enterprises were more often set up in the south of the country, in urban zones and medium-sized conurbations. Thirty-nine percent had their own website when they launched and 16% had a website selling online. Although the finance for these projects was greater in the trade sector, their survival rate after three years was the lowest of all sectors. In addition, although 57,000 entrepreneurs chose auto-entrepreneur status, only half of those registered in H1 actually began their activity before the end of the year. Auto-entrepreneurs in trade are younger than the conventional business creators and they invest much smaller sums to launch their projects.