When the Global Entrepreneurship Research Association conducted a study to determine where female entrepreneurs are the most and least common worldwide, it found that they are most prevalent in developing nations like Angola and developed countries on the Arabian Peninsula, like Saudi Arabia or Kuwait. According to the study, many developed nations in Europe have comparably meager rates of female entrepreneurs.
In honor of Women’s History Month, here’s a brief history of women entrepreneurship in the U.S. and a look at female entrepreneurs paving the way.
A brief history of women entrepreneurship
The first record of female entrepreneurship in the United States was in 1739 when 16-year-old Eliza Lucas Pinckney took over her family’s three plantations in South Carolina.
Pinckney discovered the indigo on her plantation produced a blue dye compatible with textiles. She told other local farmers about her discovery, and, as a result, South Carolina exported 130,000 pounds of indigo in just two years.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, women mostly inherited businesses from their husbands. Starting in the 20th century, women became more involved in entrepreneurship. This was often borne out of necessity, especially during World War II when many husbands were deployed.
In 1988, Congress passed the H.R.5050 – Women’s Business Ownership Act of 1988, providing women equitable access to capital. The Act led to the creation of the Women’s Business Centers and the National Women’s Business Council. More importantly, it eliminated discriminatory lending practices, such as state laws requiring a woman to have a male relative co-sign a business loan.
Women entrepreneurs to know
At ManyChat, we have had the privilege of meeting and working with some very talented female entrepreneurs, including:
Candace Junée
Candace Junée is the founder of Epic Fab Girl, a membership community for Christian women entrepreneurs. She also runs the Go Getter podcast, and manages a personal Instagram account with more than 52,300 followers.
In her “spare” time, she sells digital courses, does speaking engagements, and helps women build six-figure enterprises through her brand and coaching business, 6-Figure Maven.
Tricia Olufemi-Olumide
Tricia Olufemi-Olumide is Nigeria’s leading business coach and a top influencer on Instagram. She’s also known as “the business fixer.”
In 2017, she read a report on small businesses in Nigeria that opened her eyes to their struggles and motivated her to use her knowledge and experience building multinational brands to make a difference. Triciabiz is the result.
The @triciabiz Instagram account is a treasure trove of information and inspiration for small businesses. You’ll find short courses, marketing tips and tools, live streams, and more from Tricia herself. She currently boasts an international audience of more than 227,000 people and she has trained even more through coaching, online courses, and one-to-one workshops.
Ashley Ann
Ashley Ann, also known as King Ashley Ann, is a talented business builder, public speaker, and social media strategist. She also has the business chops to help individuals earn significant revenue. For example, she’s helped:
- 11,000+ individuals monetize their social media
- 700+ people earn six-figure incomes
- 151 people generate seven-figure incomes
- Nine clients to consistently enjoy million-dollar months
- 1000+ businesses generate $25K- $45K per month using YouTube Live
Angela Allan
Angela Allan is an award-winning journalist turned copywriter and marketing consultant whose strategies have helped clients generate $10k revenue in 48 hours. She’s written for Rolling Stone, FHM, and the Australian Penthouse.
Angela is the Founder of Mads Collective Group and is the “Queen of Giving Good Copy.”
Her work has been featured on School of Bots, Sumo.com, the Chat Marketing podcast, and ManyChat’s blog. You can follow her on Instagram at @MissSoot.
Dot Lung
With more than 125,000 students or “baby dragons,” around the world, Dot Lung (aka “The Mother of Social Dragons”) empowers creatives to harness the power of social media to grow careers and businesses.
She works on global campaigns with clients like Meta, Facebook, Wix, Motionographer, Digital Design Days, and many more. Find her on Instagram at @dotlung.
Lattice Hudson
Lattice is a business coach, leadership mentor, and social sales expert. She is the Founder and CEO of Lattice & Co., which has a mission to help women make more money and increase their impact while living a life they love.
Lattice specializes in assisting online coaches to start and scale their online coaching business to six and seven figures. Find her on Instagram at @latticehudson.
Lauren Petrullo
Lauren Petrullo is an award-winning marketing expert, digital marketing and eCommerce consultant, and successful multi-founder. She is the CEO and founder of marketing agency Mongoose Media, founder of Asian Beauty Essentials, Chief Marketing Officer of Beau & Belle Littles, and co-founder of Bot Blondes.
Lauren is also the winner of Prism’s Top 100 Marketing & Advertising Leaders and Marcom’s Advertising & Communication Award. She has been featured in Yahoo!, The Wrap, Thrive Global, Refinery29, Shopify, Advertising Week, ComputerWorld, and TickerNews. Find her on Instagram at @laurenepetrullo.
Monique Lombardo
Monique is the Founder of The Socialista and co-creator of Rise With Reels. She is a social media, Reels, and marketing coach who helps businesses create a stellar Instagram presence to become the go-to experts in their industry and turn their followers into dollars! Find her on Instagram at @thesocialista_.
Trilce Jiron Garro
Trilce, founder and CEO of TBS Marketing in Costa Rica, designed Interdepartmental Marketing, which unites graphic design, marketing, sales CRM, and customer support under one umbrella. Trilce has delivered unbelievable results for clients, including 3X in sales, 3X in conversion rates, and 100% retention rates.
Many of these female business owners and entrepreneurs are speaking at our Instagram Summit from April 5-6, 2022.
