MORE new businesses were launched in Berkshire than ever before last year.
This is according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which reported that there were 9,920 new registered companies in the county last year.
Wokingham reported 1,415 of these.
In 2019, just over 9,000 businesses launched in Berkshire meaning 2020 brought a new record high for the region.
In total, there are now nearly 73,500 registered companies in the county, a growth of 4.7% from the end of 2019.
John Korchak, operations director at Inform Direct which compiled the ONS data for a regional review, said: “It is excellent news to see that Berkshire has achieved a record year for new company formations during 2020, despite the unprecedented uncertainties brought on by Covid-19.”
He said many of the new companies are in the retail sector, and were set up to sell goods online during the pandemic.
Mr Korchak acknowledged that the coronavirus has led to a number of existing businesses shutting down.
“2020 was a year like no other for UK businesses,” he continued.
“Although we can look forward to a brighter future with the vaccination programme, there remain unknown factors such as how quickly the economy will recover and of course the impact of Brexit.”
Across Berkshire, Slough saw the highest number of new businesses (2,801), followed by Reading with 1,826 new companies.
