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Wonder women Professional women and inspirational female innovators are collaborating to empower each other to grow and succeed in the business world
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The Women’s Chapter is a movement for high-impact women in business to connect, inspire and thrive. Its mission is to amplify the voices of the female changemakers driving global enterprise. We met up with founder, Michelle Pughe-Parry de Klerk, who explains why and how it supports women-led business. Even before Covid, femalefounded businesses were less likely to get funding than their male counterparts. This gap has widened during the pandemic, with figures released from the British Business Bank earlier this year revealing that just £13.7m of convertible loans were approved for companies whose senior management teams were
Abbie Miranda and Mazie Fisher, co-founders of Beija London
all women, compared to £216.6m for all-male teams. Companies led by women received just over one per cent of all the funding under the start-up rescue scheme. The Women’s Chapter platform connects female founders with a motivated community of consumers who want to use their purchasing power to support the success of other women.
How did you decide to found The Women’s Chapter? After my twin daughters were
born in 2011, it was important for me to be physically and emotionally present in their lives, but also set an example for them as a professional role model. Back at work, I desperately needed inspiration. I knew I needed to ‘get out there’, but every event I went to left me feeling deflated and alone. It was clear there was a need for curated opportunities for women to come together to grow their networks and businesses in a meaningful way. I started small, running The Women’s Chapter as a side hustle on a shoestring. I’m a firm believer in facing fears and swallowing the frog – the more you do it, the easier it gets to push your boundaries, and
Lara Morgan, serial entrepreneur and founder of Scentered
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