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A Rising Tide: Financing Strategies for Women-Owned Firms

by

Susan Coleman and Alicia Robb

Stanford University Press

Women-owned firms represent an increasingly important segment of the small business sector.  According to data from the most recent Survey of Business Owners conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2007 there were 7.8 million women-owned firms in the United States generating $1.2 trillion in revenues and providing employment for 7.6 million people.  As the numbers indicate, these firms are significant, both in terms of their number and economic impact.  And, today, even more women are pursuing the entrepreneurial path.

When it comes to finance, many women entrepreneurs and small business owners harbor a lot of anxiety.  Women often to feel that their financial skills are inadequate, and they have historically had a harder time securing both debt and equity.  Difficulties in securing financing, in turn, have had implications for women's willingness and ability to start, maintain, and grow their firms.   A Rising Tide, however, provides a new perspective on women's entrepreneurship by presenting the financial strategies that have helped today's bold and creative women entrepreneurs succeed.

A Rising Tide examines women entrepreneurs' motivations and goals as well as techniques for matching those goals to appropriate financial strategies and funding sources, some of which may differ from those of their male counterparts.  The authors take a "lifecycle approach" in discussing the issues and strategies for different types of women-owned firms, starting with nascent and home-based firms and working through to growth-oriented and technology-based enterprises.  Each chapter provides insights into what the authors' findings mean for women entrepreneurs and for aspiring businesswomen.   A highlight of A Rising Tide is that each chapter also includes real-world cases studies featuring women entrepreneurs as a way to bring the book's lessons to life. 

Uniquely, this book ties together the latest research on financing women-owned firms and its implications for actual or potential business owners.  Drawing on the Kauffman Firm Survey, a longitudinal survey of over 4,000 new firms, the authors are able to provide particularly useful conclusions, making this a "must read" for the thousands of women who are starting or may start businesses in the next few years. 

Susan Coleman

scoleman@hartford.edu

A Rising Tide: Financing Strategies for Women-Owned Firms

by

Susan Coleman and Alicia Robb

Stanford University Press

Women-owned firms represent an increasingly important segment of the small business sector.  According to data from the most recent Survey of Business Owners conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2007 there were 7.8 million women-owned firms in the United States generating $1.2 trillion in revenues and providing employment for 7.6 million people.  As the numbers indicate, these firms are significant, both in terms of their number and economic impact.  And, today, even more women are pursuing the entrepreneurial path.

When it comes to finance, many women entrepreneurs and small business owners harbor a lot of anxiety.  Women often to feel that their financial skills are inadequate, and they have historically had a harder time securing both debt and equity.  Difficulties in securing financing, in turn, have had implications for women's willingness and ability to start, maintain, and grow their firms.   A Rising Tide, however, provides a new perspective on women's entrepreneurship by presenting the financial strategies that have helped today's bold and creative women entrepreneurs succeed.

A Rising Tide examines women entrepreneurs' motivations and goals as well as techniques for matching those goals to appropriate financial strategies and funding sources, some of which may differ from those of their male counterparts.  The authors take a "lifecycle approach" in discussing the issues and strategies for different types of women-owned firms, starting with nascent and home-based firms and working through to growth-oriented and technology-based enterprises.  Each chapter provides insights into what the authors' findings mean for women entrepreneurs and for aspiring businesswomen.   A highlight of A Rising Tide is that each chapter also includes real-world cases studies featuring women entrepreneurs as a way to bring the book's lessons to life. 

Uniquely, this book ties together the latest research on financing women-owned firms and its implications for actual or potential business owners.  Drawing on the Kauffman Firm Survey, a longitudinal survey of over 4,000 new firms, the authors are able to provide particularly useful conclusions, making this a "must read" for the thousands of women who are starting or may start businesses in the next few years. 

Susan Coleman

scoleman@hartford.edu