March is Women’s History Month, and Barbara Weltman at the Big Ideas for Small Business blog looks at women’s impact on the small business economy.
She notes 40% of all U.S. businesses are owned by women and collectively these companies generate $1.8 trillion a year. Women also are starting businesses at a high rate, with 1,821 new businesses every day.
Weltman also points out that women-owned businesses perform better than average. Tech companies owned by women deliver a 35% higher return on investment, and women-owned businesses that obtained venture capital outperformed those founded by men by 62%.
There’s also evidence that women entrepreneurs are more self-reliant. Only a quarter of women owners took business loans, compared with one-third of men. Statistics show women ask for less money when borrowing than men, Weltman writes.
