This article in Investopedia looks at the 4 most common reasons businesses fail.

Running a business is not for the faint of heart; entrepreneurship is inherently risky. Successful business owners must possess the ability to mitigate company-specific risks while simultaneously bringing a product or service to market at a price point that meets consumer demand levels.

While there are a number of small businesses in a broad range of industries that perform well and are continuously profitable, 20% of small businesses fail in the first year, 50% go belly up after five years, and only 33% make it to 10 years or longer, according to the Small Business Administration (SBA).1

To safeguard a new or established business, it is necessary to understand what can lead to business failure and how each obstacle can be managed or avoided altogether. The most common reasons small businesses fail include a lack of capital or funding, retaining an inadequate management team, a faulty infrastructure or business model, and unsuccessful marketing initiatives.

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