In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, here are the “Top 10 Reasons To Love Small Business,” as from our friends over at the Office of Advocacy of the SBA.

10. Small businesses make up more than 99.7% of all employers.

9. Small businesses create more than 50 percent of the nonfarm private gross domestic product (GDP).

8. Small patenting firms hire 43 percent of the high-tech workers and produce 16.5 times more patents per employee than large patenting firms.

7. The 27.5 million small businesses in the United States are located in virtually every neighborhood.

6. Small businesses employ about 50 percent of all private sector workers.

5. Home-based businesses account for 52 percent, and franchises are 2% of all small businesses.

4. Small businesses make up 97.5 percent of exporters and produce 31 percent of all export value.

3. Small businesses with employees start-up at a rate of over 500,000 per year.

2. Four years after start-up, half of all small businesses with employees remain open.

1. The latest figures show that small businesses created 65 percent of the net new jobs over the past 17 years.

It’s true: Small business is the heart of the American economy, and it’s why I really do love small business owners.