A new report has revealed that LGBTQIA businesses have boomed this year, despite huge challenges
BY YASMIN VINCE, IMAGE BY CANVA
A report released in late October has found that LGBTQIA business contributed approximately £106 billion to the UK economy this year. The LGBTQ+ Business Count report examined the contribution, challenges and characteristics of LGBTQIA entrepreneurs across the UK and is the largest survey to focus on this group.
The report is published by OutBritain, the UK’s first LGBTQIA chamber of commerce, and Open Political Economy Network (OPEN), a leading think tank focusing on diversity and tech. It estimates that there are at least 250,000 LGBTQIA businesses in the UK and have combined turnover of at least £106 billion.
The largest of these businesses was identified by the report as Global Media and Entertainment, which owns popular radio stations such as Heart, Capital and LBC. The company turned over £806 million this past financial year, 14% up from 2022.
The success of LGBTQIA businesses has come despite some particular challenges faced by companies as a result of being openly and vocally LGBTQIA. Survey respondents told OutBritain and OPEN that these challenges included invasive questions in the workplace, a lack of role models and discrimination from mainstream business networks.
To mitigate these challenges OPEN proposed three recommendations, including a public policy of collating better data around LGBTQIA businesses, ensuring these companies have a voice in government and a greater emphasis on enhancing equality of opportunity in procurement decisions made by major companies and public authorities.
Philippe Legrain, Founder of OPEN and lead author of the report said: “It is hugely important to document both the contribution and the challenges of LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs in the UK, which is why we have produced this report as a call to action to the government, mainstream business organisations and large corporations.”
But there were also positives. Most entrepreneurs said there were benefits that arose from running an LGBTQIA business. Most said it made them more determined to succeed and that their diverse experiences and perspectives were an asset to the business.
Founder of OutBritain, Matt Dabrowski, said: “This report not only celebrates the vibrant and dynamic contributions our community make to the UK’s economy, but more importantly, it will allow us to focus and align our efforts in driving a fairer, more diverse UK economy where LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs and businesses are given fair representation and the opportunity to thrive.”
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