You are here
because you are:
A Woman who:
Wants to start a business
Need help building your idea
Don't want to go it alone
Believes in giving back
Need a more balanced life
A Woman-owned business:
Deciding what next level looks like
Exploring options for growth
Seeking strategies & relationships
Incorporating social enterprise
Desire to have a greater impact
An Organization:
Serving women, has women-focused initiatives or social enterprise projects
Building for-profit relationships to better serve clients
In need of organizational training
Interested in virtual worlds
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I think the key is for women not to set any limits. - Martina Navratilova
Not the stats you typically expect to see at a website geared towards helping women launch and grow businesses. But then again, neither are we. If you think you do not have a voice, or that you cannot make a difference, I challenge you to think again. Her Startup encourages women to do more than just launch and grow thriving businesses, but to use them to give back in some way and make life better for someone else. We are not feminists, nor political activists, but realize there is strength in numbers and that everyone can do something no matter how small. The stats above show there is much to celebrate, but also much that can be done.
Historically, women have been torn between doing what was necessary and doing what they loved or care most about. The two do not have to be at odds with each other and are critical if you are truly to have a life worth living and a legacy worth leaving. We desire integration rather than balance, and for women to be able to live out their life's purpose rather than spend their days feeling compartmentalized. Will it be a challenge? Yes. Will it be hard work at times? Yes. But will if be worth it? Most definitely! And not only for you, but for the lives you touch and those for whom you will unknowingly make a difference.
*Center for Women's Business Research, Polaris Project,
CARE Conference Call (Oct 07)
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Key Facts About Women
10.4 million firms are 50%+ owned by women, employing more than 12.8 million people & generate $1.9 trillion in sales.
In Canada, human trafficking for prostitution is estimated to be worth $400 million annually.
3/4 of all majority women-owned business (7.7 million firms) employ more than 7.1 million people and generate $1.1 trillion in sales.
In the Ukraine, between 200,000-400,000 women have been sold into prostitution.
From 1997-2006, majority women-owned firms grew at twice the rate of all firms (42% vs. 24%).
70% of people live in extreme poverty. 2/3 are women & children.
Women-owned firms account for 41% of all privately held firms.
100 million people in the world are illiterate. 2/3 are women.
2.4 million firms owned by women of color in the US employ 1.6 million people & generate $230 billion in sales annually.
Women produce 50% of the world's food, yet own only 1% of the farm land.
Women-owned firms without employees generate more than $167 billion in annual sales.
A woman having as little as 5 years of basic education increases her children's chance of surviving past age 5 by 40-50%.
80 million school age children do not go to school. 2/3 are girls.*
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