NEW DATA ON WOMEN MAJORITY OWNED BUSINESSES

The recent (2009) Center for Women’s Business Research study of 417 women representative business owners shows that the products, services, jobs and income they create has a significant economic impact. According to the Center, the more than “$2.8 trillion dollars annually from majority-women-owned firms coupled with the more than 23 million people who are employed directly and indirectly by these firms again proves that women-owned firms are not a small, niche market but are a major contributor and player in the overall economy.” (p. 10)[1]

Women owners operate in all business sectors: 20.9% in professional, scientific and technical services; 13.4% in retail and wholesale trade; 11.0% in business services; 10.8% in administrative, support and waste remediation; 8.6% in healthcare and social assistance; 7.7% in communication media; 6.2% in financial, real estate and insurance; 7.0% in personal services; and 14.4% in a combination of other fields. (Women Owned Businesses by Industry, Table 2, (2009); Figure 4, (2008) p. 7). What is new is that the highest percentage by far is now in professional, scientific, and technical services.

This profile of businesses owned most likely reflects not only women who exited corporations to start businesses of their own due to the absence of opportunities to advance into the top positions, difficulty in balancing family and business demands, company layoffs, downsizing and changes in the overall economy but also more subtle changes, particularly the increasing number of women who are achieving higher educational levels than men in these fields.

What might all this mean? First, as women increase their percentages in businesses formerly owned by men, they bring a new style of leadership and an appreciation of the value diversity adds. Second, the data suggest a “need for new thinking and programming to support women who seek to grow their businesses.” As the Center points out, most of the small business programs in this country are geared to helping the neophyte or start-up owner. That means neither the existing college nor university educational offerings nor the federal government’s Small Business Development Centers and Small Business Administration services are addressing the special needs of women who want to grow their businesses, whether it is in terms of adding employees, expanding into overseas markets, or taking on additional customers and product lines.

Given the importance of these women-owned businesses, this niche needs to be filled. There is an opportunity here for an enterprising college or university to build a collaborative effort with a non-profit organization like the Center for Women or for the development and sponsorship of an economic development center in the Lowcountry to build and enable this process through a creative grant.

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[1] Center for Women’s Business Research (October, 2009). The Economic Impact of Women Owned Businesses in the United States. http://www.womensbusinessresearch.org. (Direct citations and percentages of ownership quoted from this study as indicated by page numbers above.