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From the iconic Flatirons to the home of the Buffs, Boulder is renowned for a number of reasons, and can now consider itself a leader in female entrepreneurship. Forbes has ranked Boulder number one on their of “The Best Cities for Female Entrepreneurs,” with an average revenue of $91,050 per woman- owned business. With an array of small startups to well established woman-owned companies, Boulder is a shining beacon for female entrepreneurs across the country.

“Female entrepreneurship has been on an upward climb over the past several years…U.S. business ownership rose 27.5% for women…from 2007 to 2012,”  Forbes

Support

Boulder’s businesswomen enjoy the resources offered by local tech accelerator , providing them an edge in terms of investment, leadership camps, events and programming. Designed to increase the number of women-led startups and to activate female leaders, MergeLane’s accelerator program takes place over 12 weeks and pairs selected female owned startups with leaders in the same field. Participants stand to receive a potential investment of up to $120,000 from MergeLane.  

A ways to go

Though the number of female entrepreneurs continues to grow, there are issues with gender diversity in business. A from Babson College revealed that women still struggle to gain support and acceptance in business. The report specifically looked at the venture capitalist investments towards female business owners. What was found was that “women were consistently left out of the networks of growth capital finance and appeared to lack the contacts needed to break through.”

One of Boulder’s woman-led businesses

Sylvia Tawse, founder and chief fresh officer of the Fresh Ideas Group (FIG), began her marketing business in 1996 when a corporate merger left her husband without a job. In a time she describes as “sheer desperation,” Tawse worked diligently to get her business off the ground and partnered with another PR consultant in Boulder, Lisa Bell, to get the Organic Trade Association of North America as a client, paving the way for FIG’s road towards success.  

FIG is a marketing firm with locations in Boulder and Denver and specializes in public relations, branding, marketing communications and social media. The firm is comprised of ten female employees who work with clients specifically in the food and health industries, like Santa Cruz Organic and Whole Foods Market.

Having created a business from the ground up, one that has lasted 20 years and counting, Tawse has some advice for fellow female entrepreneurs. She suggests finding a mentor in the industry and to constantly be involved within the community you choose.

Tawse said, “It’s really easy to pick different communities and to get yourself engaged in them.”