Small business in construction: new products and new markets

Abstract

The problem of getting out of an economic recession is equally relevant not only for all countries without exception, but also for all segments of national economies. Analysis of the response of small and medium-sized businesses, as well as individual entrepreneurship, showed that this is perhaps the most affected segment of the national economy from the coronavirus crisis. At the same time, the study showed that the recovery potential of the economy significantly depends on the degree of development and scale of small business. And if the pattern of achieving sustainability in overcoming crisis shocks identified by the authors is higher, the lower the share of SMEs in the global economy, the lower the share of SMEs in the global economy, the higher the share of SMEs in GDP, the more successful recovery growth is.
 Unlike developed countries, Russia has a three-fold lower share of SMEs in GDP, but a significantly higher volatility of the shadow economy. Preventive measures that prevent the expansion of the latter and support small businesses have not been able to stop the bankruptcy of small and medium-sized enterprises and have not yet led to the desired results in terms of the recovery rate of business and investment activity in the small business segment. Their effectiveness is assessed by the business as insignificant. At the same time, from the authors point of view, not only inclusive incentive and supportive measures can cope with the recession of the small business segment. It is important to find drivers of development in the specified segment. They are the ones who will be able to give an impetus to development at the high level of economic efficiency maintained during the crisis.
 In the context of the search for economic clusters that need construction services and have proven their ability to implement investment and construction projects in a cost-effective manner, the authors identified eight starting types: creative economy, innovative economy, green economy, health and sports economy, festival and farm economy, and service economy of small towns and settlements. Targeted focus of government support measures for these segments can become a real trigger for the development of SMEs.