Women-owned businesses surge in number, study says
But firms trail in getting capital, building markets
— reported by the Houston Chronicle
The number of women-owned businesses, many of them one-person enterprises, grew at twice the national rate for all private companies from 1997 to 2002, with the biggest increases in Nevada and Georgia.
About 28 percent of private companies were owned by women in 2002, the report, released Thursday by the Census Bureau, said. It focused on privately owned companies, as opposed to publicly owned.
[snip]
The report is based on the Census Bureau’s 2002 survey of 1.9 million business owners. It defines female-owned businesses as firms in which women own 51 percent or more of the interest or stock.
The report identified 6.5 million firms with female owners, an increase of 20 percent from 1997. That compares with 13.2 million businesses owned by men, an increase of 16 percent. The number of all private businesses grew 10 percent to about 23 million. Some 2.7 million firms were owned equally by men and women.
The number of women-owned businesses grew by 43 percent in Nevada and 35 percent in Georgia during the five-year period.
Most of the women-owned businesses had no employees other than the owner, but that’s true for most private businesses.
[snip]
Hmmmm…. maybe this is something I should consider. I’ve always thought about starting my own business. When is the right time?
