“Women are the future of small business” is the kind of line that shows up on a lot of social media graphics. It sounds nice. The more useful question is whether the numbers back it up, and what that means for a woman actually running a business today.
What the data shows
The U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Business Survey tracks employer businesses, meaning businesses with at least one paid employee besides the owner. A few figures from its most recent releases:
- The number of women-owned employer businesses grew nearly 20% between 2017 and 2023, from 1,134,549 to 1,356,990, according to the Census Bureau.
- Over the same period, employer businesses owned by minority women grew 49.8%.
- In 2022, women-owned employer businesses made up 22.3% of all U.S. employer firms. Together they had about $2.1 trillion in receipts, 11.4 million employees, and $508.5 billion in annual payroll (Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Business Survey).
Those numbers only cover businesses with employees. Many women-owned businesses are solo or run with contractors, so the full picture is larger than this.
So what does this actually mean?
Two things are true at once. Women-owned employer businesses grew substantially over those six years, and they employ millions of people. That is a real economic force, not a niche.
At the same time, roughly 22% of employer firms is still well short of half. There is a lot of room to grow, and plenty of women-owned businesses stay small for reasons that have nothing to do with ambition: access to capital, caregiving responsibilities, smaller networks in certain industries, and less time to work on the business instead of in it.
What helps women-owned businesses grow
Growth tends to follow a few practical things:
- Pricing for profit, so the business can afford to hire and invest.
- Hiring the first help, whether that is an employee or a contractor, so the owner is not the bottleneck.
- Access to capital and the financial records that make it easier to get.
- Visibility, so the right customers and partners know the business exists.
- Networks that bring referrals, introductions, collaborations, and advice.
That last one is where community matters most. Being seen, being heard, and being remembered by the right people is often what turns a capable business into a growing one.
The future is built by the people in it
Statistics describe what has happened. What happens next depends on individual business owners making good decisions, getting the support they need, and helping each other along the way. That is exactly what WEN is built for. Join the WEN Facebook group or come to a WEN Round Table to meet other women business owners who are building that future right now.
Related: Financial Planning for Women Business Owners and How to Grow Without Burning Out.
