Panel Presentation

The Rise of the Woman Entrepreneur
Since 2020, women now make up nearly half of entrepreneurs in the US. That’s up 29% since 2019! The cause? 2020 brought a lot of layoffs and COVID which led a lot of women looking for more flexibility because of childcare needs. This shift thought has been incredibly beneficial to our communities with women opening up a lot more businesses that are community driven and are much more likely to offer hybrid work schedules to their employees. In this panel, we will hear from five Chicago-based women entrepreneurs in the beauty, construction, marketing and jewelry industries – many of whom started their businesses during the pandemic – and how being an entrepreneur has affected their lives, families and careers.