Insider Media Limited

Family business owners in the Midlands are “cautiously optimistic” about their prospects for growth. That’s according to entrepreneurial business experts at PwC in the Midlands, who said that family-run businesses are putting into place ambitious plans for the future.

According to PwC’s latest Global Family Business Survey, the majority of family business owners are upbeat about the future, with 64 per cent saying they are aiming to expand.

However, 70 per cent of respondents expressed concern about market conditions (compared with 46 per cent in 2007) and 42 per cent identified legislation and regulation as particular concerns.

Paul Norbury, partner and regional private business leader at PwC in the Midlands, said: “Despite the most challenging economic and financial conditions in decades, family businesses in the Midlands appear to have weathered the storm and are showing ambitious plans for the future. Many are planning to expand in response to improving market stability.”

However, the survey suggests that family businesses owners are optimistic about their place in the market, as 69 per cent of respondents said they believe that being a family business has helped them through the economic crisis.

Paul Norbury, partner and regional private business leader at PwC in the Midlands, added: “The last two years have been characterised by tougher times for all companies but family businesses, unlike many other organisations, have survived well, helped in large part by their longer term outlook and more cautious approach to debt.

"They have also benefited from a relatively simple hierarchy and strong relationships with customers, which has meant that they have been less likely to make employees redundant. In doing so, they have managed to sustain a good platform for growth.”