Women Owned Businesses Losing Ground

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce™ released an important report to Congress titled; "Women's Businesses Struggle for Market Share," (http://www.uswcc.org/marketshare) which finds, during a decade of strong growth in the number of women-owned firms, women's revenue-based market share shrank ten percent.  

Newly released data from the Preliminary Estimates of Business Ownership by Gender, Ethnicity, Race and Veteran Status: 2007, from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2007 Survey of Business Owners alarmingly finds, even though the number of women's business grew 44% between 1997 and 2007, our already small revenues-based market share declined over 10% – dropping from 4.41% in 1997 to 3.95% in 2007.

"Women own over 7.8M firms, (28.75% of all firms in the U.S.) but secure only 3.95% of all revenues.  The opportunity loss and unrewarded risk, loss of job creation, market demand, tax revenues, and potential retirement assets greatly impacts America's financial future," says U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce CEO, Margot Dorfman.

"The media hype about the growth of women's businesses continues to emphasize the number of women-owned firms, rather than our grossly stunted financial success," continues Dorfman.   "This report highlights the growth challenges women business owners face and the opportunity loss our country experiences as we fail to support women as entrepreneurs and business leaders.  One third of all businesses – a huge segment of our total business base – are declining instead of growing.  We cannot afford to not help women business owners."

The U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce finds failure to access affordable capital, failure to access markets, and segregation from mainstream business development and leadership have contributed to the failure of women's businesses to achieve acceptable market share growth and has contributed to America's economic decline.

The USWCC has provided a full report to Congress with a detailed list of recommendations and is initiating aggressive regional activities to support women's businesses and fuel revenue growth.  "We're taking women to the heart of economic development, to the sources of business funding, and to the mainstream business marketplace to turn the tide and bring new revenue and market share growth," says Dorfman.

Women and community leaders interested in supporting women's business revenue growth are encouraged to contact the chamber through the USWCC web portal (www.uswcc.org).  

The U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce is the leading advocate for women on economic and leadership issues. The USWCC creates opportunities and change for women by building a strong community voice, advocating for members, and providing programs and benefits to support the economic growth of women across America and around the globe. The USWCC is a not-for-profit 501(c)6 organization founded in 2001; its headquarters offices are located in Washington, D.C.