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| ©2024 Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global®. All rights reserved. |
Tune in to the latest episode with inventor, patent holder, author, keynoter and globalist Julie Austin when she discusses, "Revolutionizing Hydration: The Story Behind the Patented Hands-Free Water Bottle." Subscribe while you are at it so you never miss an episode.
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Women are ready to learn, connect, and grow. It was a testament to Wells Fargo’s commitment to ensuring that diverse businesses have access to capital, financial education, mentorship, and community.
The economic potential of women entrepreneurs is vast. The latest statistics show that women-owned businesses contribute significantly to the U.S. economy, generating $2.7 trillion in revenue and employing 12.2 million workers.
As women-owned businesses continue to grow, it’s essential to recognize the progress made, particularly among Black women, during challenging times.
Structural changes are needed to address many of these barriers, but on a personal level, remembering your why, investing in continuous learning, protecting your brand, extending grace, and reframing fear may provide fuel to push forward.
Here are 5 tips for aspiring women entrepreneurs. Let's level the playing field.
“I own stilettos and I own sneakers already, but I don’t own the combination of the two. As a consumer I wanted the combination of the two,” Blakely says. For her, the shoe is the intermediary between dressy and casual. (She cites Sneex as ideal for the classic jeans-and-a-nice-top outfit formula.)
She goes on to say, “I designed them to be able to wear every day, but 100% women will embrace them and wear them formally. Women are already wearing regular sneakers in formalwear, so I think that that is going to happen for sure."
Full details here.
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| (L-R) Tami Lange and Amy Mills |
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| (L-R) Yvette Laugier, Valarie King-Bailey, Amy Mill & Diamond Young |
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| ©Global Small Business Forum 2024, Chicago, 10/18/24 |
Discover these 4 women business owners. Shop their products and use their services.
Above are just a few of the photos from the event capturing some of the women entrepreneurs who have escaped from corporate America and run their own successful businesses. 👏
The event was sponsored by Associated Bank (Diamond Young is Assistant VP, FX at AB) and hosted by Foley & Lardner.
The role of women in family and society is changing very fast – thank goodness. The days when women were typically expected to look after household activities have changed in various social aspects like equal treatment to women, no discrimination between males and females allowing for equal opportunities to work in any field. Slowly these changes have empowered woman to become more competitive and also encouraged her to start a business.
The article was written in 2017. It also includes some traits of women entrepreneurs (additional articles). Different perspective due to India origin. Very academic.
More and more, entrepreneurs are stepping into the business world, driven not just by a passion for their products and services but also by a deep sense of faith. These “faith-filled” business owners see their work as a means to serve their communities, live out their beliefs and build a legacy for their families.
Learn about a few here.
Avestria Ventures, a fund focused on women-founded start-ups, led an early investment of $5 million in Ms. Papin-Zoghbi’s company, AOA Dx. And two years later, Good Growth Capital, a firm founded by women, led an additional $17 million investment.
Raising the next round of funds is expected to be difficult. It's not the first time that women entrepreneurs hit a funding wall.
Read the entire article at The New York Times (might require subscription).
Women in leadership bring unique strengths to the table like fostering collaboration and driving innovation. Decades of research show that when women lead, businesses are profitable and teams are collaborative.
They inspire greater fairness and dedication and create environments where everyone can thrive. Despite the obstacles they face, women continue to break barriers and rise in leadership roles across politics, education, and corporate sectors.
Here is a listing of currently available GrantWatch Women and Small Business grants.
With the changing times and increasing awareness, the 21st century has become an era of empowerment for women, fostering an environment that encourages and supports their entrepreneurial aspirations.
Discover how women-led businesses have emerged as a powerful force, contributing significantly to economic growth and societal progress.
Venture capital is paying attention to Berkeley-generated companies. And they claim they are just getting started.
Big note: Berkeley was ranked first for female graduates who started businesses, first for female-founded companies and first for the amount of capital raised by women.
“That UC Berkeley is No. 1 globally across five major categories, including three for female founders, shows how Berkeley continues to light the way, and we do so inclusively,” [Laura] Hassner [executive director of UC Berkeley Innovation & Entrepreneurship and Berkeley Changemaker] said.
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In spite of this impressive growth, systemic disparities in funding and mentorship opportunities persist. Fortunately, new programs are addressing these gaps.
Read on to learn how black women entrepreneurs make significant contributions to the economy.
“Men really need a network that’s going to maximize their access and exposure to market information,” says [co-author and Professor] Brian Uzzi. Women, however, “need the same thing men need and one thing more.”
Specifically, women need “private information,” which may include insider tips about a company’s leadership culture and politics, or hints about how to make an impression in a male-dominated industry, for example.
Read on to understand that for a woman to land a top job, she needs different types of networks than men. Simply being well-connected is not enough.
Are you intentional with your nighttime habits? These folks are. They set themselves up for success each night by creating routines that help them wake up energized, ready to accomplish their goals and clear on how they’ll spend each day.
Take it from SPANX founder Sara Blakely who spends the evening with her children and then puts them to bed. Every night, she takes a bath and lights a candle as a way to power down from a hectic day—she sees value in turning off work mode.
Are you good at turning off work mode?
With that spirit, Audrey Chocron and Cynthia Phitoussi – co-founders and managing partners of SeedIL, a VC fund focusing on seed and pre-seed Israeli startups – began meticulously researching the local startup ecosystem and became particularly interested in startup accelerators and incubators, and new immigrant entrepreneurs like themselves.
They spoke to CTech about founding and managing SeedIL Ventures which just raised $18 million for its second fund, about their journey as two female investors and founders in a male-dominated landscape, and how the war has impacted investment.
Recognizing the urgency of investing in women, the Case for Investing is not only a testimonial to We-Fi’s track record but, more importantly, the need for the global development community to recognize the economic potential of women entrepreneurs.
Women represented nearly 50% of startups in the U.S. in 2021 — up nearly 30% since 2019. Experts believe the pandemic drove more women to take the plunge into working for themselves, and that drive has only continued to result in more growth with more female business owners.
Gusto's survey found that 64% of women who started their business in 2022 cited the need for more flexibility.
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A new film from Maureen Castle Tusty and James Tusty's Sky Films, She Rises Up, tells the stories of three women who have overcome such obstacles to found businesses in retail, cosmetics, and textiles.
Watch She Rises Up. The road to eliminating poverty begins with HER.
One of the goals of the program is to build women’s confidence so that they can be successful entrepreneurs while remaining true to their own values.
Read the entire article and for more information on how to apply to the CREW program visit here.
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Take a walk down memory lane with some of my posts celebrating Happy Birthday Escape From Corporate and Happy Anniversary Escape From Corporate America.
And remember y'all, it started with an article I submitted to The Conference Board in 2003 and from there, I started this blog, and from there, well the rest is history. Here's what I said when I launched and it still is at the core of the my thinking day in and day out:
When I authored "Escape From Corporate America!" published by the Conference Board in 2003, I had no idea the reaction to it would be so profound and overwhelming. My inbox was flooded with email messages from gifted women who could not say enough about their dissatisfaction at work. Apparently, I underestimated just how fed up women are with Corporate America. EFCA offers a comprehensive look at why women are leaving BIG companies for entrepreneurship. Hint: They want freedom, flexibility, recognition, more money, and opportunities to leave a legacy -- all the things they once thought they would find within corporations. Are you ready to ... "Escape From Corporate America?"
This blog serves as a beacon of hope for women entrepreneurs who aspire to create their own destiny. Hooray to you for continuing your readership here which I thank you for. We started with a handful of readers a month and now we range anywhere from 30,000-60,000.
Let's keep this good vibe going.
New data from my company, Gusto, shows that women started half of all new businesses in 2023. This is compared to a mere 29% in 2019. Women-led businesses have proven uniquely resilient to tough economic conditions like persistently high inflation and interest rates, and they generated $2.7 trillion in revenue last year.
For women, flexibility is the No. 1 reason for starting a business. They want to have the freedom to decide how they work.
At Escape From Corporate America (EFCA), we have known this to be true since 2003 on the flexibility and freedom parts of Gusto's findings. Here's what I said in 2003 when EFCA was launched:
"They [women] want freedom, flexibility, recognition, more money, and opportunities to leave a legacy -- all the things they once thought they would find within corporations."
Read the full article to learn how female entrepreneurs are a major driver of business startup growth.
Policymakers, businesses, banks, community leaders, and individuals have a role to play in unlocking women’s economic power, valued at $10 trillion annually. We need whole system change that includes comprehensive macroeconomic reforms including fairer tax systems and recognition of the care economy.
We need localized women-centered financial products and entrepreneur support systems to create more equitable economies for all marginalized groups, including women.
The latest evidence on women-led businesses finds that they not only reduce poverty but that they also drive job creation, spark innovation, and contribute to safer, greener and more vibrant communities, ensuring that everyone thrives collectively. These women-led enterprises are regenerative forces – building business communities and hiring local workers. Local economies simply cannot succeed without them.
And, now, as I [Amy] watch my own children play “grown-up,” my heart is full. They create clever roles as entrepreneurs, inventors, artists and social influencers. Will they follow the traditional path of higher education and conventional careers? Who knows?
She goes on to say that what truly matters is that they [her kids] dare to dream big, set their sights high, push boundaries and understand that with unwavering determination and perseverance, any goal is within reach.
Take a moment to express admiration for those who have served our country. We are forever grateful for their service and owe them all.
Unwilling to be confined by the corporate ladder, they flourish in the retail, healthcare, and professional services sectors. They constantly push boundaries and prove convincingly that female entrepreneurs can also excel in traditionally male-dominated industries.
Most importantly, they showcase that it’s never too late to pursue entrepreneurial dreams.
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| ©2024 Laurel J, Delaney. All rights reserved. |
Etsy Mother’s Day 2024 is a good day to take inspiration from mom entrepreneurs who have been juggling motherhood and running a business. Consider “the women” (in all forms) out there to excel even in the business sphere, like; being more creative, selling online, building a brand, and being famous worldwide.
Note: 80% of female entrepreneurs sell on Etsy, out of which many are mothers.
Here's a list of some of the most wonderful women entrepreneurs on Etsy and their stories of how they made it into the world of eCommerce.
Nearly one in every three entrepreneurs running established businesses is a woman. For start-up activity, there are .80 women for every 1 man. Globally, women were more likely than men to be solopreneurs (1.47 women solopreneurs for every 1 man).
These were among the findings presented in the GEM 2022/2023 Women’s Entrepreneurship report, entitled Challenging Bias and Stereotypes.
If you haven't read it yet, I suggest you do so now because women play a very important role in driving economic growth.
Note: The report is sponsored by Cartier Women’s Initiative (CWI), the Frank & Eileen™ Center for Women's Entrepreneurial Leadership (F&E CWEL) at Babson College, the School of Management (HEG-FR) in Fribourg, Switzerland and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi, housed in the World Bank Group).
The mountain, which is 5,895 meters (19,340 feet), and is the largest free-standing mountain rise in the world, took Mwitula six days to climb. But the journey was worth it.
So you know Rahel's job, by day she works as the Director Of Innovation for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and by night she runs her own socially responsible fashion brand ILAVA.
When she was approved to take a three-month sabbatical from her day job earlier this year, instead of taking a staycation, she set her sights on tackling one of the most challenging treks in the world as an emotional reset.
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| Nancy Geenen. Used with permission. All rights reserved. |
What she discovered in her journey is that when a woman leader connects with employees on a human level by being vulnerable and inviting in-depth conversations without judgment, other differences are not as significant, and the leader builds trust as people feel more comfortable being themselves.
These are among some of the many golden nuggets Nancy shares in her book, "The Advantage of Other: A Leader's Guide to Building an Equitable, Dynamic, and Productive Workplace."
“If we don’t start businesses, then other women aren’t going to see that as a possibility,” said Vanessa, the founder and CEO of Leva, an app-based community that educates and empowers mothers and parents of babies aged 0-12 months.
This representation — in entrepreneurship and at all levels of business — matters because women are going to tackle problems with new and different solutions than previously explored.
Learn how we can all build a bigger bandwagon for women entrepreneurs so it's not a lonely journey.
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| ©2024 Laurel J. Delaney. All rights reserved. |
For every Black woman who starts a business, a barrier is broken. An impressive 50,000-plus Black women are innovating in the United States — but not without the uphill battle of fighting bank funding denials, limited access to capital and systemic racism and sexism.
Despite the challenges, Black women are bringing their products and services to the market.
Here are four Black woman-owned businesses breaking barriers and sharing insights on business.
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| ©2024 Laurel J. Delaney. All rights reserved. |
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| ©2024 Laurel J. Delaney. All rights reserved. |
Though their stories too often go untold, all of us stand on the shoulders of these sung and unsung trailblazers — from the women who took a stand as suffragists, abolitionists, and labor leaders to pioneering scientists and engineers, groundbreaking artists, proud public servants, and brave members of our Armed Forces.
Let's put our hands together and applaud all that you, my dear women readers, have accomplished.
That said, women entrepreneurs are rewriting the narrative of small business by bringing their creativity, passion, and unique perspectives to the table. From e-commerce ventures to niche service providers, women thrive in industries ranging from fashion and beauty to technology and sustainability.
Here is a list of small business ideas for women that answer the question of how to make money from home as a woman entrepreneur. Many require little to no start-up costs.
Read her full story and discover the challenges she faced while growing her business and how she overcame them.
Wood represents vitality and creativity, while the dragon is related to success, intelligence and honor in Chinese culture.
This combination makes people born in the Year of the Wood Dragon full of energy and drive. They dream of changing the world and are good at coming up with innovative ideas and implementing them. They are perfectionists and will not give up on their goals easily.
The Year of the Wood Dragon is believed to be able to foster growth, progress and abundance, and this year will be good to build a solid foundation for something new with long-term potential. The last Year of the Wood Dragon was 60 years ago, in 1964, the year the Beatles took the world by storm!
Are you a dragon? If so or even if you aren't, this will be a year for unprecedented opportunities for those who are bold, driven, creative, and full of energy. Play off the strong vibes. Go after what you want.
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| ©2024 Laurel Delaney. All rights reserved. |
According to Entreprenista Founders Stephanie Cartin and Courtney Spritzer, in order to change this, we need to expand the visibility of successful women founders – which is the driving force behind our Entreprenista 100 awards. Telling these stories and highlighting these women will inspire the next generation.
We also need to rethink how we portray entrepreneurs and leaders – emphasizing qualities like creativity, empathy and collaboration rather than outdated masculine stereotypes. Founders in our community are making billions of dollars in revenue collectively, and they’re wearing pink while they do it.
Learn more from Cartin and Spritzer – their biggest piece of advice to women considering entrepreneurship and what the perfect plan might reveal.
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