Marion, IA – Marion Economic Development Corporation (MEDCO) has released the Marion Community Index for the first quarter of 2022. The report is informed by a newly developed business survey that allows MEDCO to better measure the health, challenges, optimism, and opportunities of the organization’s 190 business partners. The survey focuses primarily on sales growth, material pricing, and employment trends.
Survey results were collected during the week of April 11th following the completion of Q1 2022. Findings include:
- 64% of companies experienced sales growth compared to the same quarter last year.
- 79% of companies expect sales to grow in the next quarter, while 77% expect sales to grow in the next year.
- 96% of respondents experienced an increase in raw material prices over the past quarter.
- 88% expect material prices to continue to increase in the next quarter, while 86% expect that to continue over the next year.
- 41% of companies added employees to their team in the first quarter.
- 50% anticipate increasing their workforce in the next quarter, while 57% anticipate workforce growth over the next year.
When asked about the primary challenge for their business right now, “Costs of materials/inflation” was first amongst their concerns (30%). Workforce attraction (27%) ranked second, and Supply Chain (20%) ranked third. Over the next six months, respondents expected those challenges to remain in that order.
“Each year we meet with about a hundred companies and collect detailed information around the condition of the economy,” says Brady Quinn, MEDCO’s Business Retention Specialist. “While those conversations will continue to be important, this quarterly survey now equips us to collect more timely information and track key trends.”
The survey will be updated each quarter. The full quarterly index report can be found here.