Majority of B.C. businesses grapple with rising costs and less demand
B.C. businesses have faced a number of challenges in the past several years, and a new survey from TD reveals how it has impacted them financially.
It found that over 60 per cent of B.C. small business owners reported facing direct financial challenges in the past year, according to a recent survey from TD.
Further, 51 per cent reported concern about “broader economic challenges” and 57 per cent about continued direct financial challenges, including rising costs, cash flow challenges, or less demand from customers.
“When we think about small business owners, there are two sides of the equation. You have the demand side, right, which is often under pressure, but you also have rising costs and financial pressure, and managing expenses,” said Tang Trang, the vice president of small business insurance for TD Insurance, in an interview with Daily Hive.
B.C. businesses have been dealing with a lot of uncertainty over this past year, including customers pulling back on their spending. According to Xero’s small business insights (XSBI) report, second-quarter B.C. business sales fell by 1.7 per cent, year-over-year, which Xero attributed to high gas prices.
Further, Moneris looked at transaction data from the first quarter of the year, finding that B.C.’s year-over-year domestic spend had fallen by 0.86 per cent compared to the same time period in 2025, which they attributed to poor consumer sentiment.
On top of lower consumer spending, businesses are also dealing with rising costs from high prices and tariffs.
Earlier this year, Daily Hive spoke with Hashem Aboulhosn, the chief growth officer at Merchant Growth, who discussed the “succession of challenges” small businesses have faced over the past several years.
There was the COVID pandemic that shut down parts of the economy and impacted consumer spending, high interest rates, a declining housing market, the first round of tariffs, the war in the Middle East, and now another round of tariffs.
But Tang did have some good news to share: “A lot of [small businesses] have a better understanding of business risk. So we’ve seen a shift. They’ve been living with this uncertainty, and the survey indicates that they are learning and they are adapting.”
He said that he is seeing businesses start to introduce more products or services, entering new markets, and investing in talent, like hiring new staff and buying equipment.
However, Tang said there still remain gaps. For example, many businesses said that they struggle to meet financial challenges of over $10,000. He suggests that businesses look at insurance options to make sure they have enough coverage for unforeseen circumstances.
TD conducted this survey between July 9 and 21, with 401 Canadian small business owners (companies with one to 500 employees and annual revenue up to $5 million).