# Southeast Small Business Statistics 2026

Author and editor: Hudson Paul, Cofounder, Pipetidy

Publisher: P101 LLC

Last updated: 2026-09-22

URL: https://pipetidy.com/southeast-small-business-statistics

This page summarizes small-business statistics for Pipetidy’s initial Southeast launch market: Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Virginia.

## Short Answer

Pipetidy’s initial Southeast target market includes about 5.49 million small businesses and roughly 8.8 million small-business employees across Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Virginia. Every target state reports small businesses making up more than 99% of all businesses.

## Key Statistics

- Georgia has 1,374,972 small businesses and 1,806,632 small-business employees. Source: SBA 2025, via Georgia Department of Economic Development and Southeast benchmark datasets citing SBA.
- North Carolina has 1,107,537 small businesses and 1,815,569 small-business employees. Source: SBA 2025, via North Carolina Governor small business proclamation and Southeast benchmark datasets citing SBA.
- Virginia has 880,366 small businesses and about 1.6 million small-business employees. Source: Virginia SBDC / Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity, citing SBA 2025.
- Tennessee has 741,196 small businesses and 1,182,437 small-business employees. Source: SBA 2025 state profile, cited by Tennessee business sources and Southeast benchmark datasets.
- South Carolina has 530,402 small businesses and 863,326 small-business employees. Source: SBA Office of Advocacy 2025 South Carolina profile.
- Alabama has 465,610 small businesses and 816,850 small-business employees. Source: Alabama Governor proclamation citing SBA 2025.
- Kentucky has 393,860 small businesses and 710,613 small-business employees. Source: SBA Office of Advocacy 2025 Kentucky profile as cited in Kentucky small-business analysis.

## State-by-State Table

| State | Small businesses | Small-business employees | Share of businesses | Share of workforce |
|---|---:|---:|---:|---:|
| Georgia | 1,374,972 | 1,806,632 | 99.7% | 42.5% |
| North Carolina | 1,107,537 | 1,815,569 | 99.6% | 44.2% |
| Virginia | 880,366 | 1.6M | 99.6% | 45.9% |
| Tennessee | 741,196 | 1,182,437 | 99.5% | 41.5% |
| South Carolina | 530,402 | 863,326 | 99.4% | 42.9% |
| Alabama | 465,610 | 816,850 | 99.4% | 46.0% |
| Kentucky | 393,860 | 710,613 | 99.3% | 42.6% |

## Why This Matters for Pipetidy

## Southeast Industry Opportunity

The target region combines ports and freight corridors, construction and manufacturing growth, equipment-intensive agriculture, warehouse and grain infrastructure, and owner-led repair and rental businesses. Pipetidy now publishes 11 regional factsheets for these markets.

- Factsheet index: https://pipetidy.com/trade-market-facts.md
- Summary CSV: https://pipetidy.com/trade-market-facts.csv

These seven states are full of owner-led operators and tiny teams. Trades and local service businesses in these markets need practical customer follow-through infrastructure: lead capture, customer notes, tasks, deadlines, AI summaries, follow-up reminders, and invoices.

Pipetidy is a free early-access CRM for owner-led small businesses that need one place for leads, customer notes, jobs, tasks, AI assistance, and invoices.

## Sources

- SBA Office of Advocacy — 2025 State Small Business Profiles: https://advocacy.sba.gov/2025/06/30/2025-small-business-profiles-for-the-states-territories-and-nation/
- SBA Open Data — State small business statistics 2025 dataset: https://web.data.sba.gov/en/dataset/state-small-business-statistics-2025
- Georgia Department of Economic Development — Small business support: https://georgia.org/business-support/small-business
- North Carolina Governor — Small Business Week proclamation: https://governor.nc.gov/governor-stein-proclaims-small-business-week
- Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity: https://sbsd.virginia.gov/
- Alabama Governor — Small Business Saturday proclamation: https://governor.alabama.gov/newsroom/2025/11/governor-ivey-proclaims-november-29-as-small-business-saturday-in-alabama/
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — State occupational employment and wage estimates: https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oessrcst.htm

## Related Pipetidy Pages

- Trades CRM: https://pipetidy.com/trades
- Small business CRM and follow-up statistics: https://pipetidy.com/small-business-crm-statistics
- Product tour: https://pipetidy.com/product
- Pricing: https://pipetidy.com/pricing