Firm start-up strategies and performance in France: Survival and growth

Essential performance outcomes of the new firm, including survival and growth, are related to financial and operational factors of the firm. We present a model that shows that firm financing via debt has some influence on types of market outreach, survival, and also growth of new firms in France. Using a robust, longitudinal dataset of the population of firms throughout the country established, continuing, and closing over the period of 2002 to 2007 (available through the French government via the SINE Survey: Système d’informations sur les nouvelles entreprises), we show that for a given indebtedness of the new firm, the entrepreneurial behavior generally improves the survival and the growth of new ventures.