There’s no doubt about it, women are increasingly coming to the forefront of the business world these days, yet unfortunately, it’s still true that less than half of all new businesses have female founders. With recent evidence showing that closing the current gender gap could generate an impressive £250 billion for the UK’s economy, it’s no wonder that those companies that offer startup advice and loans to new entrepreneurs are actively looking for better ways to support women who want to get into business.
If you’re ready to launch your own company but, as a woman, you felt that the world of enterprise wasn’t geared up for you, it might surprise you to learn that some of the biggest and best known organisations in the country were actually set up by women. Let these leading ladies inspire you and give you the boost you need to establish your own business today.
Bet 365 – Denise Coates
Denise Coates is a British business woman who set up Bet365 twenty years ago. From its humble beginnings in 2020, when her entire operation was run from a Stoke-on-Trent portacabin, Denise has taken her inspiration from her father’s betting shop business and built up an impressive organisation that is one of the biggest names in online betting. Not only that, but she’s also become Stoke City Football Club’s chairwoman and has an estimated worth of about £2.5 billion.
Tinder & Bumble – Witney Wolfe Herd
I bet you didn’t know that the CEO and founder of the popular Bumble dating app was a woman! American Witney Wolfe Herd not only set up this social dating mobile application but was also a cofounder of Tinder. It’s no wonder that she’s so successful as Bumble has been valued as being worth over $1 billion!
Starling Bank – Anne Boden
Born in Swansea, Anne Boden established Starling, a challenger bank that runs a mobile-only entirely digital operation back in 2014 based on expertise derived from her banking career. In the past five years, Starling Bank has received over £230 million of funding. I also won the accolade of being named as 2019’s Best British Bank.
HTC – Cher Wang
Cher Wang is a Taiwanese business woman who co-founded the HTC electronics company in 1997. Originally, the company focused on manufacturing and designing laptop computers, but not so long ago, the brand began to move into the smartphone production market and haven’t looked back since. Cher now has an estimated worth of about $1.1 billion.
Flickr – Caterina Fake
Caterina Fake is an American female entrepreneur who co-founded Flickr, the photo sharing site in 2003. After two years, she sold it onto Yahoo at a profit.
Canva – Melanie Perkins
The co-founder of Canva, the multimedia design platform, is Melanie Perkins, an Australian woman who remains the company’s CEO eight years after it was established. Today, Canva employs over 800 people around the globe, its platform has over 20 million users and it has a value of around $3.2 billion.
Eventbrite – Julia Hartz
Julia Hartz is an American entrepreneur who was responsible for co-founding Eventbrite, the global event and ticketing technology platform, in 2006. Today, she is still the CEO. With so many inspiring female business leaders to look to, there’s never been a better time to seize the day and to embark on your own entrepreneurial pursuits.
