GSA metro ranked the fastest growing in country for startups

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The Upstate has made it to the top of another list — this time ranked by LinkedIn as the fastest growing metro area for entrepreneurs in the United States.

The population of new companies in the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson area has grown by 68%, according to the study, trailed by other small-sized cities Colorado Springs, Colo., at 67%; Louisville, Ky. at 63%; Greensboro-Winston-Salem, N.C., at 42%; Charleston at 34% and the Buffalo-Niagara Falls, N.Y., area at 33%.

Other contenders include Birmingham, Ala.; metro Jacksonville, Fla.; Milwaukee; Nashville, Tenn.; and Boise, Idaho.

The Upstate’s startup growth rate outstrips even larger cities included on a separate list: Greater Orlando, Fla. at 46%, Miami-Fort Laurderdale at 45%, Greater Tampa Bay, Fla. at 43%, Greater Houston 41%, Dallas-Fort Worth at 40% and Las Vegas at 39%.

“Scores of workers and businesses used the pandemic to relocate to more affordable cities or to be closer to nature,” Jordyn Dahl, news editor at Linkedin News, said in an article about the study. “Many are choosing to settle down and start a business in their new homes, with part of North and South Carolina, Colorado and Kentucky claiming top spot on our list of fast-growing smaller metro areas from small businesses.”