A few hundred years ago when farming was king, the small firm share of employment was high. This shrank as we entered the Industrial Revolution (think manufacturing and heavy industry), and it expanded as service industries increased (think cleaning services and pet care). However, over the past few decades the share of small firm employment in certain industries has been undergoing a reversal: for example, small firms’ employment share has decreased in retail trade while it has increased in manufacturing. The data support the media stories of big box stores and mini-mills proliferating
