A whole bunch of economic data that was delayed by the federal government shutdown is finally coming out, including the Census Bureau's numbers on new business applications. That report measures how many filings the IRS got for new employer identification numbers — they're kind of Social Security numbers for businesses, and they are essential to any business.

Not all of those applications turn into actual businesses. But the number of applications for them this year has been booming. It was up 7% between October and November and more than 20% over a year ago.

A quick caveat about these numbers: “These data are kind of messy, so it is hard to figure out what's going on underneath,” said Joyce Klein, senior director of the Business Ownership Initiative at the Aspen Institute.

Some of the applications could be existing companies changing their corporate structure, she said. This can happen when there are big changes in tax law, like the GOP bill that passed in the summer. But there is one trend in the data that might tell us something: tons of applications for new retail trade businesses. 

“And the last time we saw like a really big spike in applications for retail trade was during the pandemic,” Klein said.

You know, when the economy was thrown for a loop and people were trying to come up with ways to make extra cash — maybe sell all of that sourdough they were baking. This appears to be happening again, said Sarah Kunst, managing director at Cleo Capital.  

“People hear that, you know, AI is coming to take your job, and wages are stagnating. We're seeing layoffs, tariff impacts, all of that. I think more and more people are stopping to say, ‘Hey, maybe we should try to find a little bit of safe harbor,’” she said.

As in, a side hustle or something that could turn into a full-time hustle if things really go south. Or an escape from the daily grind. Whatever the reason, it’s gotten really easy to set up a new business, Kunst said. 

“Whether it's using online tax filing software or learning about how to set up an LLC and why you might want to do that from an influencer that you follow, it all feels a lot more accessible now,” she said.

That’s what Vincent Puopolo found when he and his cousin started Maryland Garage Solutions earlier this year. They used a couple of web services to register their business and set up a website.

“It was very straightforward. I mean, we were up in an actual business within probably a month,” he said.

At which point he quit his corporate tech job and started organizing people’s messy garages.

“We do flooring, we do organization, we build out shelving and really help people sort of get rid of all their crap,” Puopolo said.

Business has been really good, he said. They’ve mostly gotten gigs through word of mouth.