These entrepreneurs believe their experience can change the funding landscape for those coming up behind them.
In 2013, when Heidi Zak was looking to raise money for her company, ThirdLove, she would have preferred some female investors. She was selling bras, after all, and her innovation was offering half sizes--something that someone who'd never had to fit a bra might not readily appreciate. But Zak quickly realized that sorting potential investors by gender was no way to get a company off the ground. "You can't raise a round saying, 'I have to have a female on my board. You'll just shut yourself out,'" says Zak.
That was five years ago, and while raising money is still hard for almost every entrepreneur, there's a growing sense that it's getting easier for women at long last. Female founders can find an increasing number of options, including new initiatives aimed at making it easier for women--especially those who want to have women investors in their company. In particular, efforts such as Portfolia, SheEO, and Pipeline Angels are actively persuading women to invest in other women.
Notably, women entrepreneurs are stepping up to the plate: In a survey of 279 U.S. women entrepreneurs conducted jointly by Inc. and Fast Company, a surprising 42 percent said that in addition to running their own companies, they made personal investments in startups. On the flip side, of those who had raised outside capital, 38 percent said they specifically sought out female investors.
www.inc.com
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