A small business is a corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship that has a small number of employees and/or less annual revenue than a regular-sized business or corporation. The exact definition of a small business can vary depending on the industry and the country. In the United States, the Small Business Administration (SBA) uses size standards to define businesses as "small" for the purpose of determining their eligibility for government grant programs. The SBA defines a small business either in terms of the average number of employees over the past 12 months or average annual receipts over time. However, different industries have different size standards, so a company could have as many as 1,500 employees and still be labeled small. In Oregon, for example, a small business is defined as a business having 100 or fewer employees.
Small businesses can include service or retail operations such as convenience stores, small grocery stores, bakeries, hairdressers, or tradespeople (e.g., carpenters, electricians), restaurants, motels, photographers, very small-scale manufacturing, and Internet-related businesses such as web design and computer programming. Many small businesses can be started at a low cost and on a part-time basis, while a person continues a regular job with an employer or provides care for family members in the home. In developing countries, many small businesses are sole-proprietor operations such as selling products at a market stall or preparing hot food to sell on the street, which provide a small income. Small businesses are often known for their adaptability and have much different operational issues than major corporations.
