An industry leakage occurs when capital or income leaves a local economy through taxes, savings and imports. In other words, dollars are spent on outside goods and services that could potentially be produced locally. While it is unrealistic to expect all inputs to be produced within a region, there are oftentimes local opportunities to plug some of those leakages.

An industry leakage study provides an economic, demographic and workforce overview for the region and identifies clusters based on potential for growth. The analysis can focus on one industry/cluster or several and provides information on jobs, earnings and businesses represented in the area.

The leakage analysis looks at industry requirements, inputs and purchases from in-region and out of-region businesses and determines in-region suppliers and gaps. This is a useful tool to analyze the performance of an industry or cluster within a region and to identify potential opportunities for economic development.

The leakage analysis:

1. Provides an economic, demographic and workforce overview for the region;
2. Identifies industries or clusters for growth;
3. Provides leakage analyses of the cluster:

• Identify businesses within the cluster using ESRI/Business Analyst;
• Shift share analysis of the industries;
• Industry requirements and in-region and out-of-region purchases;
• Conversations with stakeholders to identify potential opportunities.

Services and fees vary.

Contact Research Director Simona Balazs at (859) 218-5764 or simona.balazs@uky.edu to get started.