Since the pandemic, women business owners worldwide have shown how resourceful and resilient they are despite receiving a fraction of capital compared to men. The statistics below reveal that while women raise less capital than men, their businesses have a higher ROI. 

Current data highlighted in several sources, including the Wells Fargo 2024 Impact of Women-Owned Businesses Report released earlier this year, paints a clearer picture of how women have shifted their work and lives.  

• Between 2022 and 2023, women-owned businesses increased 4.5 times over men’s businesses. As a matter of fact, women launched more businesses than they closed during the early stages of the pandemic in 2020. The opposite is true for men during that time frame. 

• Currently, 39.1% of all businesses are WOB, an increase of 13.6% from previous years. This equates to over 14 million women-owned businesses, and those numbers are rising globally. 

• 12.2 million people are employed by WOBs in the US. 

• Today, there are nearly 40,000 women-owned businesses with 50+ employees. These companies employ half of the WOB workforce and generate half of all revenues.

• If all women-owned businesses’ average revenue matched men’s, it would equal approximately 7.9 trillion in additional revenue.

• Total additional revenue if minority-women-owned businesses’ average revenue matches white women’s:  $667 billion

• The average revenue for women-owned firms is $193,000, while for men-owned businesses, it is $754,000. The growth rate for women’s businesses is larger than that of men’s during 2019-2023. Women’s growth was 12.1%, and men’s 7.5%. 

President and CEO of Women Impacting Public Policy, Angela Dingle, shares, “It’s incredible to see how women are strengthening the post-COVID economy, but their impact can be even greater with additional support tailored to the needs of specific demographic segments. While we’ve seen new mentorship and networking programs emerge, specialized grants, and other services to help support the growth of women-owned businesses, we must continue to do more. By working together, we can create an environment where women can make an even greater impact on the economy and for themselves.”

Impressive momentum is happening, and women’s impact on the economy is clear. However, there are sizable gaps that need to be addressed.

How do we close those gaps? We give women access to opportunity. 

Sources: BizJournal/Louisville, Wells Fargo Impact of Women-Owned Business Report, Wippededucationinstitute.org

Photo Credits: Graphic, Wells Fargo Impact of Women-Owned Business Report, Image: Gustavo-Fring, Pexels