Your Intel · Research & Insights
Local business, measured locally.
InUnison creates original research on what Richmond-region local, independent businesses are actually experiencing – then puts it to work. Read the findings, benchmark your own business, or add your voice to next year’s report.
You don’t need to be a member to take part. Research Panel participation does not require InUnison membership.
Two ways in
Use the research, or help shape it.
Pathway one
Use the research
Read InUnison’s original findings, see where regional business confidence stands, and benchmark your own business against real local data.
- State of Local – the annual report
- The InUnison Local Business Confidence Index
- The Benchmarking Tool
Pathway two
Shape the research
Add your business’s experience to the picture. The Research Panel is open to any qualifying Richmond-region local, independent business – owners and employees alike.
- No InUnison membership required
- Short surveys through the year
- A $5 local-business gift card for completed surveys
Featured research
What the 2026 data shows.
Each year, State of Local surveys local, independent businesses across the Richmond region. 170 businesses took part in 2026.
84%
operated at a profit or break-even – the strongest result in four years of the research.
71%
introduced a meaningful innovation in the past year, up from 61% in 2025.
36%
are actively using AI in day-to-day operations – no longer early-adopter territory.
93%
are involved in supporting their community in some form.
From State of Local 2026, based on responses from 170 local, independent businesses across Greater Richmond.
The InUnison Local Business Confidence Index
New in 2026: a structured measure of local business health across five dimensions, each scored from −100 to +100. A score above +10 signals expansion; below −10 signals contraction. The composite is the unweighted average of all five.
| Dimension | 2026 | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth/decline | +33.8 | ↓ Gradual softening |
| Profitability | +54.0 | ↑ Strongest reading yet |
| Local economic outlook | +8.0 | ↓ Approaching neutral |
| Financial security | +40.0 | ↑ Recovering |
| Hiring intent | +35.0 | → Stable |
| Composite index | +34.2 | → Essentially flat |
One dimension worth watching: local economic outlook has declined for three straight years and now sits near neutral – even as businesses feel steadier about their own operations.
“Richmond’s local businesses are running stronger operations in a more uncertain world.”
Read the reports
Pulse research: currently in the field
InUnison is following up with State of Local 2026 participants through a short interim pulse survey to see how conditions have changed since spring. Results will be added here once the findings are published.
How it works
From lived experience to usable intelligence.
Local businesses respond
Surveys, interviews, and studies through the year. Individual answers stay confidential.
InUnison analyses the results
Findings are reported in aggregate – trends, benchmarks, and the Confidence Index.
The intelligence goes to work
Reports, benchmarking data, and a stronger, evidence-backed case in advocacy and policy conversations.
The Research Panel
Add your experience to the picture.
The Richmond Region Business Research Panel is how local businesses take part in the research directly. Panelists are invited to short surveys through the year – participation is always voluntary, and you don’t have to be in every one.
Membership is not required. The panel is a regional initiative, open to any qualifying local, independent business – whether or not you belong to InUnison.
Confirm you qualify
A short qualification step confirms you own or work for a local, independent business in the Richmond region.
Join the panel
Set up a quick panelist profile so we know where to send research opportunities.
Take part when it fits
Respond to surveys that are relevant to you. Skip the ones that aren’t.
Get a local thank-you
Completing a survey earns a $5 gift card to a local business – the featured business changes from survey to survey.
Who qualifies
Owners and employees of local, independent businesses that operate in the Richmond region. Nationally represented businesses, franchise owners and operators, and organisations that aren’t independent local businesses don’t qualify. Individual responses stay confidential and are reported only in aggregate.
Richmond region – current panel eligibility
Some surrounding localities may also be included depending on the research.
Research & Insights creates original intelligence. Resources helps you learn from it and put it to work.
Common questions
No. The Richmond Region Business Research Panel is a broader regional initiative and is not limited to InUnison members. Any qualifying local, independent business in the Richmond region can take part.
Owners and employees of local, independent businesses that operate in the Richmond region – the City of Richmond, Chesterfield, Henrico, Hanover, Goochland, Powhatan, New Kent, and Prince George counties, and the Town of Ashland. Owners and employees of nationally represented businesses, and franchise owners and operators, don’t qualify. A short step confirms your business before you join.
Completing a survey earns a $5 gift card to a local business. The featured business changes from survey to survey, so the thank-you itself puts money back into the local economy.
Yes. Individual responses are confidential, and findings are reported in aggregate.
Research & Insights creates original intelligence. Resources helps you learn from it and put it to work. See Resources for the Learning Lab, Tools & Resources, and Video Library.
Much of InUnison’s research is shared openly to support the whole local business community. Exactly what, if anything, becomes member-exclusive is still being finalised alongside the new membership tiers launching in October 2026.