How small, women-owned businesses lift all women
When we support small, femme-owned businesses, we support issues that affect everyone—pay equity, child care, equal opportunity, and civil rights for all. Here’s how.
Corina Guillory, founder and owner of CoffeeSock
In 2011, Corina Guillory started sewing and selling CoffeeSocks from her house. It was both a finish line and a beginning. As a young mother and wife with a big dream, she knew there was a more sustainable way to have her dream career while also being present for her beloved family. So she quit her full-time job and invested fully in this new venture.
Her dream? A sustainable world for herself, her family, her community and the world. She believed then and now that big, global changes radiate out from communities of individuals. It’s how we heal people and the earth.
When we support small businesses owned by women, like CoffeeSock, we invest in the means for women’s autonomy. It’s pretty simple—women will hire other women. They will pay women equally to men. They are more likely to support family-friendly work environments. And they are more likely to invest in the surrounding community and promote equal opportunity across all intersecting racial, cultural, and sexual identities.
Don’t take our word for it. Consider these facts:
According to a 2013 U.S. Trust Insights on Wealth and Worth report, “successful women are more likely than successful men to own a business so they can pursue a personal passion and to make a positive impact on the world.”
Global Women’s Entrepreneurship Research reports that women are 1.23 times more likely than men to start businesses based on environmental principles rather than economic ones.
According to MetLife’s Employee Benefit Trends Study, “female small business owners are more likely to recognize when employees are stressed, tired, or burned out.”
That same study shows that female small business owners are more likely to recognize the importance of employee benefits that meet the needs of diverse employees and employees in different life stages, including those who are parenting, sick, or caring for aging parents.
Research on startups shows that “a company with a female founder and a female executive will hire 6x more women.”
“Studies show women reinvest up to 90 percent of their income in their families and communities, compared to 40 percent for men,” according to Women Owned.
Nerdwallet reports that in 2020, “40% of US businesses are women-owned” and in 2019, “64% of new women-owned businesses were started by women of color.”
To own a business can be liberating. It can also be an economic necessity. The pandemic pushed far more women than men out of the workplace, and ongoing discriminatory policies and corproate environments lock still other women out, especially women of color, trans women, and women with disabilities. When women own their businesses, they have the means to own their lives.
As Women’s History Month 2022 comes to a close, you can invest continually in femme futures by shopping from femme-owned small businesses.
We’re so glad you’re part of the CoffeeSock community. We are proud to offer simple, sustainable, and economical products across the globe. We employ a rad group of women artists and leaders to produce products that add value to our community far and wide. And we’re proud to support the Austin, Texas economy and contribute to the city’s civic life. That’s what small, femme-owned businesses do all over the globe.