The State of Small Business in Barbados

National Survey of the Small Business Sector (Barbados)

Gender and Ownership (2016 vs 2025)

Male-only or male-dominant ownership remains the majority (52.4%), but this has declined from 59.6% in 2016. Female-only or female-dominant ownership has increased from 34.4% in 2016 to 40.8% in 2025, indicating meaningful progress in women’s participation. However, women-owned firms remain overwhelmingly concentrated at the micro-enterprise level, with very limited representation among small and medium-sized firms - a pattern largely unchanged since 2016. Sectoral segregation persists: women are concentrated in services, while men dominate industry, construction, and transport. Over 53% of MSMEs report annual revenues below BDS $100,000, confirming that most firms operate at very small financial scale. Nearly half of MSMEs report operating at a loss or breaking even, highlighting narrow margins and limited buffers. Revenue and Expenditure Using a methodology aligned with the 2016 MSME report, total MSME revenue is estimated at approximately BDS $5.03 billion. When the agricultural sector is excluded for direct comparability, MSME revenue is estimated at BDS $4.9 billion, up from BDS $3.47 billion in 2016. This increase reflects growth in services and employment rather than widespread improvements in firm-level profitability. Estimated MSME Revenue Section 2: Financial Performance, Revenue, and Export Activity Only 8.6% of MSMEs export, confirming that the sector remains overwhelmingly domestically oriented. Among exporters, export revenue typically accounts for less than 10% of total sales. In contrast to the 2016 report (which focused on MSMEs’ share of national exports), this study shows that exports are marginal to most MSMEs’ core business models, even when MSMEs contribute visibly to aggregate export earnings.

Exports

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Small Business Association of Barbados