Italy faces business succession risk as elderly owners increase

A report by CNA titled ‘Imprese senza ricambio’ highlights a growing risk to the Italian productive system due to a lack of generational turnover in sole proprietorships. As of June 2025, approximately 314,824 individual business owners in Italy are aged 70 or older, representing 10.7% of the total. This is an increase from 8.9% a decade ago, even as the overall number of individual business owners has declined.

The crisis is compounded by a shrinking pool of young successors. Between 2014 and 2024, youth-led businesses in Italy decreased by over 153,000 units, a 24% drop. This trend is linked to a significant demographic decline; the Italian population aged 20 to 39 decreased by approximately 1.4 million people between 2015 and 2026.

Regional data shows varying impacts. In the Piceno province, 1,469 owners are aged 70 or older, accounting for 14.2% of local sole proprietorships. In the Milan metropolitan area, there are approximately 8,000 owners over 70, making it the third province in Italy with the highest number of elderly owners, following Rome and Naples. The aging trend is particularly pronounced in the agricultural sector.