According to the 650 female small business owners surveyed in Visa’s State of Female Entrepreneurship study, 61% chose to self-fund their own startup (mostly out of necessity). This May 4, 2019 article in Forbes shares other options for funding. In addition to bootstrapping, women can also look to grants or SBA loans
Research shows that investors interview women differently than men. Women who want to maximize their chances of getting funding need to learn how to navigate the bias that investors may not even realize they have. Check out this May 1, 2019 article in Fast Company to learn more.
This April 22, 2019 article in Fast Company highlights how women entrepreneurs are creating their own networks of women. In addition to opening doors for each other, women are providing needed support during those early days of launching a company. The article shares that, “finding a group of women founders who talk candidly about their experiences can also help silence one’s inner critic.”
This April 9, 2019 article in Entrepreneur discusses the explosive growth of female minority owned businesses but also highlights how funding options are less available to these founders. The piece also shares examples of how these women are using pitch competitions as alternative funding sources.
Disparity in the number of young male and female entrepreneurs can often boil down to lack of confidence.
This March 27, 2019 piece in Forbes has advice from young women entrepreneurs including the comment, “Your confidence will grow as your success does, so don’t be afraid to invest in yourself and your skills – this is what will really grow your business and your confidence.”