More than 12,000 businesses started up in Sussex last year, according to figures which show the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well.
About 7,400 businesses were launched in West Sussex and about 4,700 in East Sussex, including 2,300 in Brighton and Hove.
The South-East was the third best performing region in the UK, with 73,000 start-ups, behind London and the South-West, according to Barclays' Start-up report 2003.
Nationally there were 465,000 new firms, an increase of 20 per cent on 2002 and the highest increase since Barclays started to publish the figures in 1988.
The sectors with the largest number of small business start-ups were business and professional services (97,100 new firms), retail (86,700) and leisure and personal services (66,300).
Lynne Pulman, Brighton small business area manager for Barclays, said: "2003 really has been a fantastic year for small businesses and this research shows the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Sussex.
"Small businesses have suffered at the hands of a slow economy in recent years but these figures show people's confidence is now returning."
Thursday April 01, 2004
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