There’s a school of thought that a recession may provide the best opportunity to launch a business venture – overhead such as office rent is lower; the job market is chock-full of ready and willing talent; a company launched in lean times could be poised to soar in a recovery.

But while some enterprising people continue to try heir hand at starting businesses, factors such as a severe lack of available credit and the overall economic uncertainty are dissuading many from taking the leap, at least right now.

New business formations in Rhode Island declined 8.9 percent in 2008 and slipped another 3.3 percent last year to 6,900, compared with 2007, when 7,837 new companies and nonprofits were established, according to figures compiled by the R.I. Secretary of State’s Office.

It’s the sharpest two-year decline in new business starts since the office started tracking the numbers in 1996, and that includes the dot-com bust of the early 2000s.

Full Story: Fewer startups braving the storm in R.I. Source: Providence Business News, February 8th, 2010 Author: William Hamilton Added on February 9th, 2010 at 12:03 pm, by Matt Mikula