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Advice for Women Entrepreneurs to Acquire Growth Capital - In the Hunt

What the Experts Say

There's a saying that if your business isn't growing, it's dying. Successful entrepreneurs like Lopez understand that growth isn't a strategy you turn on and off as you need it. Rather, it's a central tenet of a company mission, a driving force behind all business decisions, and something that's forever on the mind of the competitive business owner. That's not to say that a company should expand for the sake of expanding, or never move out of a growth phase. It simply means that committing to growth means having both the vision to spot opportunities when they arise and the confidence to pursue them.

Throughout this book, we profile business owners like Lopez--entrepreneurs who embrace growth and aren't daunted by its challenges and inherent risks. These women are prepared for the possibility of growth, and are able to respond quickly and efficiently when opportunities arise. They know their markets, their own capabilities and limitations, and, most important, the resources available to help them achieve their goals.

As you begin to think about your own growth plans, keep this lesson in mind: Understanding the financial tools at your disposal is critical, because educating yourself about sources of capital is the fastest way to position your business for growth. Companies that don't have a grasp of the various sources of capital--or, more important, how to access them--may be caught flat-footed when something good comes along. Similarly, business owners who don't have their eyes open to the full range of financing options may dismiss opportunities as beyond their reach when in fact they're more than attainable. Worst of all, a company that pursues the wrong source of capital, or chooses a financing tool based on erroneous information or miscalculations, could very quickly grow itself right out of business.

To help you avoid these pitfalls and mistakes, this book will provide an overview of the various sources of capital, and help you match the right one to your needs. Even more importantly, it will offer practical tips to help you secure the financing of your choice. By sharing the stories of successful women entrepreneurs, we hope to take some of the mystery out of the money. Before you begin your close-up examination, however, you need a general understanding of the current financial and business landscape.

Hear Me Roar

If ever there were a time to be a woman business owner, it's now, our experts say. Women are starting and growing companies in record numbers, and as a result are gaining ground and favor with the corporate world like never before. "The financial community is now awakened to the power of the women's business market and is more likely to be wooing them," says Julie Weeks, executive director of the National Women's Business Council.

Indeed, the power and potential of women-owned firms is hard to deny when you consider these statistics from the Center for Women's Business Research:

• There are 10.6 million U.S. businesses in which a woman or women own at least 50 percent of the company, and 6.7 million in which a woman or women own a majority of the company.
• The 6.7 million majority-owned firms employ 9.87 million workers and generate $1.19 trillion in annual sales.
• The number of women-owned businesses grew by 23 percent between 1997 and 2004, compared with 9 percent growth of all U.S. businesses during the same time period.

And that's just the beginning. Literally. According to the 2004 NAWBO membership survey, sponsored by OPEN: The Small Business Network SM from American Express, expansion is a top priority for NAWBO members, more than 40 percent of whom plan to grow their businesses into new markets in 2005. Similarly, a 2004 survey by the Center for Women's Business Research found that expansion is the top goal for women owners of $1 million firms. What's more, a whopping 87 percent of respondents to a survey by the Women Presidents' Organization said their businesses are currently growing, while another 83 percent said they're optimistic about their future growth and success.

Clearly, a great many women-owned businesses are thriving, and much of that can be attributed to increased access to capital. NAWBO members, for example, are acquiring business capital at higher rates than at any other time in the past. More than 90 percent reported using at least one source of capital in the past 12 months, compared with 83 percent in 2002. Meanwhile, the Center for Women's Business Research reports that two-thirds of the women currently seeking expansion capital were completely successful in their previous efforts to obtain capital, while almost three-quarters (72 percent) of women who expanded their businesses achieved or exceeded their target goals.

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Par Excellence is the respected voice amidst the chatter of other women's magazine titles. In Par Excellence top female executives share information on all the topics that their counterparts crave, including networking, executive coaching, mentoring, financial planning and financial strategies for women, fashion, technology, marketing trends, family, healthy lifestyle, success strategies, diversity & inclusion and much, much more.