While 2020 has been an incredibly challenging year for small businesses, new research from Capital on Tap found that thousands of people up and down the country have started their own business despite uncertain times.

Whether due to necessity or the opportunity afforded by increased amounts of time spent at home, the UK’s lockdown entrepreneurs are helping to drive the economy at a time when other businesses are closing and unemployment is rising.

New businesses by region:

1. London – 135,074
2. South East – 42,774
3. North West – 37,317
4. West Midlands – 30,716
5. East – 29,498
6. Yorkshire and the Humber – 21,838
7. East Midlands – 20,542
8. South West – 20,030
9. Scotland – 16,494
10. Wales – 8,977
11. North East – 8,444
12. Northern Ireland – 3,966

London’s long-standing reputation as a hub for new businesses stood strong throughout 2020 with 17 of the UK’s top 25 entrepreneurial hotspots being in London with start-up powerhouses Camden and Hackney leading the way, in fact, more than a third (36%) of new businesses were born in the nation’s capital.

Outside of London, only Birmingham, Manchester, and Leeds were able to crack the top 10 areas for new business registrations.

1. Camden – 19,980
2. Hackney – 15,029
3. Islington – 10,527
4. Westminster – 9,451
5. Birmingham – 9,264
6. Newham – 6,811
7. Manchester – 5,549
8. Barnet – 5,445
9. Leeds – 4,712
10. Hillingdon – 3,903
11. Redbridge- – 3,834
12. Leicester – 3,590
13. Enfield – 3,560
14. Tower Hamlets – 3,529
15. Glasgow – 3,457
16. Liverpool – 3,314
17. Harrow – 3,288
18. Ealing – 3,268
19. Brent – 3,227
20. Croydon – 3,205
21. Haringey – 2,892
22. Buckinghamshire – 2,834
23. Hounslow – 2,707
24. Bristol – 2,688
25. Waltham Forest – 2,663

Top 10 most common industry/sectors

1. Online Retail – 5.4%
2. Property Development – 3.6%
3. Management Consultancy – 3.5%
4. Development & Construction – 3.4%
5. Property Letting – 3.0%
6. Business Support Services – 2.9%
7. Freight & Haulage – 2.2%
8. Food Prep & Delivery – 2.1%
9. IT Consultancy – 2.0%
10. Beauty – 1.7%

As coronavirus restrictions forced more people to shop online, the online retail sector accounted for more than 5% of businesses registered in the UK since lockdown began. It’s likely that many of these businesses were founded by ‘homepreneurs’ who are using the extra time spent at home to turn their skills and hobbies into online businesses using services like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy as shop windows.

The food preparation sector also saw a large number of new registrations accounting for over 2% of all new businesses. Examples of the types of businesses in this category include street food vendors, food stalls, and delivery or take-away only restaurants. This suggests that while eating indoors in traditional settings has been disrupted by coronavirus restrictions, entrepreneurs seized the opportunity to start mobile food stalls and vans, taking their food directly to the people instead.

Third-party food delivery services such as Just Eat, Deliveroo, UberEats, and even social media apps like Instagram have also made it easier for people to start and promote small businesses from their own kitchens, turning their talent and passion for cooking and baking into a source of income.

In June, Uber Eats announced that it had almost doubled the number of restaurants on the app in just four months, resulting in a sales increase of 160% as lockdown fueled demand.