50 Small Business Quotes — Support Small Business Quotes

Starting a new business is never an easy process. There are hurdles to jump over along the way, from inventory to training new hires and dealing with fluctuating markets. So, if you need some Monday motivation (or an inspirational quote for any day of the week) before you open the doors to your small business for new and loyal customers, you’ve come to the right place. These inspiring small business quotes from famous entrepreneurs and other notable people can give insight into business strategy and comfort you when you feel overwhelmed during the busy holiday season. Remember, while your team may be small, the small business community is the opposite.

If you own a small business, then these quotes will help start your day off right as well as give advice on what may be next if you are doubting your next business move. And if you are a customer looking to support small businesses, make sure to shop local this year on Small Business Saturday, which is November 26, 2022. The annual November observance takes place after Black Friday, and is a great opportunity to get in some gift shopping as well as support women-owned, Black-owned, Latinx-owned, and AAPI-owned businesses.

Small business quotes remind us all of the importance of uplifting community members and entrepreneurs who are changing the retail space year-round — so keep shopping small throughout the holidays and into the new year. If you decide to use one of these quotes as a caption for Instagram, make sure to tag your favorite small businesses to spread the word and promote their hard work!

Motivational Quotes About Starting a Small Business

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1. “There’s nothing wrong with staying small. You can do big things with a small team.” — Jason Fried
2. “A big business starts small.” — Richard Branson
3. “It’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen.” — Scott Belsky
4. “Opportunities don’t happen. You create them.” — Chris Grosser
5. “If you don’t drive your business, you will be driven out of business.” — B.C. Forbes
6. “To be successful, you must act big, think big and talk big.” — Aristotle Onassis
7. “You don’t build a business, you build the people, then people build the business.” — Zig Ziglar
8. “You don’t need to have a 100-person company to develop that idea.” — Larry Page
9. “Chase the vision, not the money, the money will end up following you.” — Tony Hsieh
10. “The secret to successful hiring is this: look for the people who want to change the world.” — Marc Benioff
11. “Continuous learning is the minimum requirement for success in any field.” — Denis Waitley
12. “My best advice to entrepreneurs is this: forget about making mistakes, just do it.” — Ajaero Tony Martins
13. “The biggest mistake a small business can make is to think like a small business.” — Aruna Bhayana
14. “The difference between who you are and who you want to be is what you do.” — Bill Phillips
15. “You have to work on the business first before it works for you.” — Idowu Koyenikan

Inspirational Small Business Quotes

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1. “The most successful entrepreneurs I know are optimistic. It’s part of the job description.” — Caterina Fake
2. “Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision.” — Peter F. Drucker
3. “Where do you put the fear when you choose to innovate? The fear is there, but you have to find a place to put it.” — Seth Godin
4. “Never give up. Today is hard and tomorrow will be worse, but the day after tomorrow will be sunshine.” — Jack Ma
5. “If you can dream it, you can do it.” — Walt Disney
6. “You never achieve real success unless you like what you are doing.” — Dale Carnegie
7. “Never give up. Great things take time.” — Unknown
8. “A small business is an amazing way to serve and leave an impact on the world you live in.” — Nicole Snow
9. “Running that first shop taught me business is not financial science; it’s about trading. Buying and selling.” — Anita Roddick
10. “Don’t worry about being successful, but work toward being significant and the success will naturally follow.” — Oprah Winfrey
11. “Business is not just doing deals; business is having great products, doing great engineering and providing tremendous service to customers. Finally, business is a cobweb of human relationship.” — Henry Ross Perot
12. “Keep on going, and the chances are that you will stumble on something, perhaps when you are least expecting it. I never heard of anyone ever stumbling on something sitting down.” — Charles F. Kettering
13. “The elevator to success is out of order. You’ll have to use the stairs… one step at a time.” — Joe Girard
14. “Plan for what is difficult while it is easy. Do what is great while it is small.” — Sun Tzu

Small Business Quotes About Customers

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1. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou
2. “If you are not taking care of your customer, your competitor will.” — Bob Hooey
3. “Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.” — Bill Gates
4. “Listening to your customers deeply, or you will have none.” — Bryan Clayton
5. “The goal as a company is to have customer service that is not just best but legendary.” — Sam Walton
6. “Get closer than ever to your customers. So close that you tell them what they need well before they realize it themselves.” — Steve Jobs
7. “Great customer service is a critical competitive advantage for a business.” — Steve Benson
8. “Make the customer the hero of your story.” — Ann Handley

Short Small Business Quotes for Instagram

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1. “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” — Sheryl Sandberg
2. “Make a customer, not a sale.” — Katherine Barchetti
3. “Don’t deliver a product, deliver an experience.” — Unknown
4. “The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams. — Michael Jordan
5. “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” — Abraham Lincoln
6. “I don’t believe in luck, I believe in preparation.” — Bobby Knight
7. “Luck is what you have leftover after you give 100%.” — Langston Coleman
8. “The secret of success in any field is redefining what success means to you.” — RuPaul
9. “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follow.” — Steve Jobs
10. The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” — Mark Twain
11. “Never ever give up! Constant effort is the key to success.” — Xavier Davis
12. “Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.” — C.S. Lewis
13. “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” — Walt Disney

Elizabeth Berry

Updates Editor

Elizabeth Berry (she/her) is the Updates Editor at the Good Housekeeping Institute where she optimizes lifestyle content across verticals. Prior to this role, she was an Editorial Assistant for Woman’s Day where she covered everything from gift guides to recipes. She also has experience fact checking commerce articles and holds a B.A. in English and Italian Studies from Connecticut College.