R.I. women’s businesses lag U.S.

Despite relatively strong growth in the number of women-owned businesses in the state, Rhode Island ranks near the bottom of the nation in the overall strength of that segment of the state’s economy.
According to a report commissioned by American Express Open, which examined the health of women-owned businesses across the nation, Rhode Island ranks No. 49 out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in terms of the economic clout of women’s businesses.
The report measures the overall economic clout by considering the growth in the number of new women-owned businesses, their revenue growth and the growth in employees.
While Rhode Island showed relatively robust growth in the number of new women’s businesses, 41.8 percent since 1997 (placing No. 32 in the nation), the state saw much less growth in the revenue of those businesses – 31 percent, ranking No. 47 in the nation – and the greatest drop in number of workers employed by women-owned businesses in the country, falling 27.8 percent.
“On average there’s decent growth in women starting businesses” in Rhode Island, said Julie Weeks, the author of the study. “But they’re not getting the support they need to get bigger.”
Although the study did not delve deeply into the causes of the statistics, Weeks said that the weak growth after startup could point to challenges female business owners may have in getting access to the capital they need to grow.
Starting a firm, Weeks said, is not typically a capital-intensive process and most financial institutions want to see a track record of success before providing loans or lines of credit.
“The fact that they’re not growing in terms of revenue may indicate challenges accessing capital in terms of growth,” she said. •

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