Canada is experiencing a boom in business startups, and guess what demographic is the fastest growing?

The over-55 Baby Boomer crowd. And they are better educated than ever before, too:

New entrepreneurs are both more educated and older than in the past. Almost one in four of those who have started a business in the past two years have a university degree, double the rate seen in 1990. At the same time, the share of startups with less than high school education fell from 38% in 1990 to 21% in 2003.

The fastest-growing segment of the startup market is the 55-and-over age group, which now accounts for 15% of total startups, compared to 11% in 1990. This reflects not only an aging Canadian society, but an increased tendency toward early retirement. With computers and the Internet, it’s now easier for older Canadians to provide consulting services from home. They can also make use of their well-developed skills and wide business network.

I have written quite frequently about this phenomenon of Baby Boomers who start businesses after leaving a career elsewhere. It seems we Baby Boomers just do not want to go off to a retirement of golf or shuffleboard.

More of us are continuing to work after retirement, and a significant percentage of Baby Boomers are choosing to start a business instead of get a job.

And it turns out that the same holds true not just for the United States, but also for Canada.

Read the full story in CA Magazine. Download the five-page research report from CIBC World Markets (PDF).

Hat tip to Greg Balanko-Dickson of Small Biz Unplugged, for highlighting this article. Small Biz Unplugged is a new small business blog focusing on Canada and Canadian small business owners.

Read also my recent article over at BNET outlining tips on how to reach the Baby Boomer entrepreneur if you sell business-to-business.

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