Built for generations: What counts in family-run gas businesses
While the largest, listed corporations often dominate business headlines, family-owned firms remain the backbone of the US economy. Around 35% of Fortune 500 companies are still family-controlled, spanning from small businesses to corporates. Between them, such family enterprises account for 64% of US GDP, generate 62% of the country’s employment, and lie behind 78% of new jobs.
But maintaining success across generations is always a challenge. The data shows that only around 30% of family businesses even make it to the second generation. This number drops to 12% for the third generation, and 4% by the fourth generation. So the question becomes: how do some third and fourth generation businesses not only survive but thrive?
In the industrial gas market, independents continue to play a vital role globally, including in the US. According to Intelligas Consulting, around 10% of the US industrial gases market has been consistently served by independent distributors, with many having some kind of family ownership, and often across several generations.
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