SWAAY is the women’s media powerhouse that we all needed, featuring articles and tips on what women really care about – from subscription delivery packages created by women, to how to juggle a business and a pregnancy. At its core, SWAAY features the full, unabridged story of female entrepreneurs, from their successes to their collective issues within the industry.
SWAAY editor Belisa Silva joins us today to talk about what SWAAY is all about – supporting women entrepreneurs who are changing the world as we know it. Belisa has been fashion editor for over a decade and has a few stories to tell of her own as a successful businesswoman.
The Beauty Industry and Female Entrepreneurship
To give an accurate picture of how involved women really are in setting beauty industry trends, Belisa mentions an indie beauty convention she attended recently. Of the 230 small businesses showcasing the beauty products, 191 were owned by women. That’s much more than just impressive — it suggests a pattern.
“Women are at the forefront of innovation in our industry. Women are the ones coming up with these unique brands,” Belisa says, referring to the natural, organic, cruelty-free ingredients that dominated the convention — and the entire beauty industry.
Because of the undeniable influence of women owned businesses, the beauty industry as a whole has been moving toward “radical transparency,” meaning that the company creating and distributing a beauty product is transparent about where the ingredients and labor come from. “Consumers are more skeptical than ever before and don’t believe big brands,” Belisa adds. Female entrepreneurs are brilliantly able to pick up on this and give their buyers the transparency they want. Many even post pictures of the production process on social media.
Financial Challenges for Women Entrepreneurs
Women are now starting companies more than ever. But one of the biggest problems faced by women entrepreneurs is access to funding. “Only about 2-6% of female-founded businesses are receiving funding,” Belisa says. That means there’s a serious disparity with women leading in innovation but have no access to capital.
But women have found a clever way to get around their lack of funding — using social media as leverage. Many of these women-owned businesses rely on product feedback from their followers on social media, forging an intimate relationship between producer and consumer. This is especially helpful considering how fast turnaround has to be these days to keep up with the latest beauty craze.
Empower Female Owned Businesses by Supporting SWAAY
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