There were nearly 7,000 new companies registered in Gloucestershire last year.

Statistics from Inform Direct show the county moved up a place in the national league table for company formations from 31st to 30th after a record year with 6,902 incorporations in 2023.

There are now 3.4% more companies in the county than in 2022, taking the total to a new high of 59,830 registered businesses.

The new statistics (which include date for South Gloucestershire) show there were:

• 1,174 new businesses in Cheltenham

• 1,076 new businesses in Gloucester

• 719 new businesses in Stroud

• 672 new businesses in Cotswold

• 646 new businesses in Tewkesbury

• 476 new businesses in Forest of Dean

On the flipside, 5,515 Gloucestershire businesses were dissolved in 2023.

Nationally, there were 900,000 new businesses in 2023, with more than a third of them (313,446) in London.

Image credit: Inform Direct