Last year (2016) saw the highest number of new recruitment agencies on record opening their doors for the first time, according to a leading PR and marketing communications firm for the recruitment industry.
Figures obtained by Clearly PR this week, under a Freedom of Information request from Companies House, show that 4,529 new recruitment businesses were registered between January and December 2016 – an increase of 13.7% (up from 3,984) over the same period in 2015.
In 2014, 3,037 new agencies were registered while 4,193 and 1,528 were registered in 2013 and 2012, respectively.
Since 2012, a total of 17,271 new agencies have registered with the total number of recruitment businesses registered as currently trading in the UK now standing at 26,901 – an increase of 56% over the last five years.
Commenting on these latest findings, Paul MacKenzie-Cummins, Managing Director of Clearly PR, said: “To say that the recruitment industry is performing well, is a gross understatement. Employer hiring and the UK economy both remain strong and this is reflected in the number of recruitment entrepreneurs wanting to capitalise on positive trading conditions and go it alone. This is clearly having an impact on the sector itself too.
“Figures published by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation in December showed that the recruitment industry is now worth £35.1 billion a year – up from £26.5 billion in the year 2012/13.”
“While we cannot predict with any certainty the impact of our leaving the EU will have on the UK economy, a growing number of would-be recruitment entrepreneurs are viewing the current state of the economy as an opportune time to take the plunge and start their own recruitment businesses.
“Confidence is high in the sector right now and we expect it to remain so as we move further into 2017. But to stay ahead in the ever-increasingly competitive recruitment landscape, recruitment business owners need to consider how they are perceived and positioned in their market.”