For military veterans pursuing their own business ventures, Madison and Milwaukee rank as the best places in the U.S. for them to live, according to PenFed Foundation, which is part of McLean, Virginia-based PenFed Credit Union.
Edelman Intelligence used the PenFed Foundation's data to determine the best places in the U.S. for veteran entrepreneurship based on livability, growing economy, veteran support and ability to start a business. The credit union created the foundation in 2001 to assist military personnel in securing finances to support themselves and their families.
Madison and the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis metro ranked No. 1 and 2 in the livability category, and of the top 20 cities overall, ranked eighth and No. 14, respectively. Milwaukee jumped 40 spots on the overall top cities list compared with the foundation's 2019 rankings, while Madison rose 21 spots.
"Thanks to the hard work of our partners in the public and private sector, Wisconsin is emerging as the leading state for veterans to start and grow their businesses," said Saul Newton, executive director of the Wisconsin Veterans Chamber of Commerce, one of the largest chambers in Wisconsin, who also was a Milwaukee Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree in 2020.
"We know that when veterans succeed, Wisconsin succeeds," Newton said. "Attracting more veteran entrepreneurs to call Wisconsin home benefits everyone, and we're proud to see that our state's investment in veteran business owners is paying off."
The top metro in the 2020 rankings is the New York-Newark-Jersey City area, followed by Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, the Chicago metro, Seattle and the Twin Cities at No. 5.
