Does location matter? : county-scale variations in new firm formation rates in Great Britain

Information about variations in the rate of new firm formation at the county level in Great Britain has recently become available; An opportunity has therefore arisen to explore the correlates of new firm formation rates. The paper begins by analysing the relative importance of factors thought to underly the new firm formation process. Secondly, correlation and regression analysis are used to winnow out those surrogate variables which seem to be most powerfully associated with variations in new firm formation rates from county to county. Finally, an attempt will be made to define 'ecological incubator environments' for new production business formation in Great Britain. From this it is possible to differentiate and classify the counties according to their incubator characteristics, and identify successful and unsuccessful counties.