Members of the Asian community are twice as likely as mainstream Londoners to start up their own businesses in the next three years according to a new survey conducted by Business Link for London. The survey, entitled 'The 2004 Londoneurs Survey', is an opinion poll of 250 Londoners, building a picture of where people seek business advice, how they plan to raise money for starting up, as well as their recipes for success.

The survey revealed a high level of self confidence, with 8 out of ten Asian respondents claiming they would be able to set up a trading business within one year - with fashion and catering being the most popular sectors of choice. The respondents also showed a high level of commitment and realism, with 1 in 2 expecting to work up to 70 hours a week, and 1 in 3 willing to take on extra paid work in order to ensure the success of their fledgling business.

However, the survey also uncovered that potential Asian entrepreneurs are much less likely than others to apply for grants funding to help them start up in business, with 1 in 2 viewing access to finance as a barrier to starting a business, whilst 1 in 3 do not know where to go for business advice.

Vernon Barrett, Head of the Business Link for London Knowledge Centre on Black and Minority Ethnic Businesses said: "It is very encouraging to see that the Asian business community is flying the entrepreneurship flag so high in London. However, many of the barriers to starting a business identified by the survey need not be so high. Business Link for London, via the Knowledge Centre, is working very hard to improve the quality of business advice provided to Black and Minority Ethnic businesses, particularly in the context of the different cultural groupings and diverse business sub-sectors within this community."

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