Why Hire a Woman Owned Business

As you conduct your event planner search, we give some compelling reasons to hire a woman-owned company. Strategic Event Design is a proud certified Women’s Business Enterprise.

Diversity is Key to Innovation

Increased diversity is a concept making great waves in many sectors across the economy. Improved opportunities for women and minorities are now being taken very seriously. Some larger corporations, like Xerox, are mandating that domestic hires of management positions must include women and minority candidates. Admittedly, the hiring process may take a little more time, but the pay-off is in spades. A Xerox spokeswoman explains that diverse backgrounds bring different perspectives to the table and that is exactly what they are looking for. The same rational could be applied to an event planner. If you are looking for fresh and exciting ideas, look to a women, or a minority, owned event planning firm.

Doing More with Less

Women-owned small businesses are on the rise in many ways. It’s a fact that women-owned businesses are starting at twice the rate of men and there are currently about 10 million in the United States alone. However, less than 5% of federal contracts are awarded to women-owned businesses and women hold less than 5% value of all business loans. Considering that until 1988 a woman needed her husband’s signature to be approved for a business loan, this unfortunate news isn’t that surprising. However, women business owners are addressing this issue by lobbying for increased federal contracts, better access to capital and better business counseling.

Forbes states that women-owned businesses have become “the Nation’s job-creating machine”. Moreover, an American Express study shows that in the last 10 years women-owned businesses grew at 1.5 times the national average and that revenue and employment within women-owned firms is higher than all other firms except only the largest, publically traded corporations.

What You Can Do

While women are launching more businesses and are becoming recognized as an economic driver, there is still more to be done. Women-owned businesses employ only 6% of the nation’s workforce and they contribute about 4% of total business revenue, roughly the same percentage as ten years ago. To really improve growth the next steps are to provide the opportunities, training and support to the women-owned businesses that are out there.

In your event planner search, please keep women-owned businesses in mind. Your event could be a big opportunity to a women-owned business and in turn you could be supporting an important part of your community.