BIG News

Kansas City Business Growth Tops National Charts

Kansas City’s thriving business scene continues to garner national attention.

According to data from Wendover Corporation, a national market research firm, Kansas City has the top business growth index in the country for 2016.

In its annual report, Wendover Corp. assessed more than 600,000 businesses across the U.S., evaluating key economic indicators to determine the growth of businesses in each market. Kansas City topped the group for a second year in a row in business growth index rankings. Other top cities in 2016 included Phoenix, New York City, San Jose, and Dallas in the top five.

Kansas City’s strong performance and rise to recognition for its business environment is tied to Missouri’s top business tax climate, diverse economy, capable workforce and fast internet speeds in recent years.

For example, according to 2014 Economic Diversity Index (EDI) analysis, Missouri ranked as the third most diverse economy in the United States, moving up one position in the rankings from 2013. Excluding government, Missouri’s top three industries by percentage of GDP in 2014 were manufacturing, real estate/rental/leasing, and health care/social assistance. This economic diversity shields the state and its major cities, such as Kansas City, from the level of recessionary impact.

According to the Wendover Corp. report, the US average business growth index rose approximately 10 percent from the 2015 average through the third quarter of 2016. This trend is based on studies of increased business growth index averages across 55 US metro areas. Kansas City and Phoenix had the largest increases in relative business growth rates, 24 percent higher than their 2015 scores.