Andrea Urquhart’s Post

Great to be involved in the Buy Women Built thriving community of female founders sharing resources and knowledge. “Our story started with a tweet: “Not everyone can invest in female founders. Not everyone can mentor female founders, but we can all buy from them.” It was so simple and powerful that it got us thinking: how can we mobilise the enormous power of consumers to support Britain’s amazing women entrepreneurs? Buy Women Built isn’t just about shining a light on the entrepreneurs of today. It’s also about inspiring the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. You can’t be what you can’t see. Making women built brands more visible not only lifts up existing entrepreneurs but also allows the next generation of girls to dream bigger. And the bigger girls dream, the stronger and fairer our economy will be.” - Buy Women Built https://lnkd.in/e7ZjDjmA #buywomenbuilt #femalefounders

Being visible as a female founder is fraught with challenges. Hear me out ... In order for female founders to be more visible, we need to first break down the barriers that keep the playing fields uneven. My work as a Founding Advisory Member with Female Founders Rise recognises that the tide is turning for female founders and I want to keep the spotlight firmly shining on a more inclusive, diverse, and prosperous entrepreneurial ecosystem. The good news, according to Finder, is that: 📣 almost 1 in 5 (18%) companies in the UK are led by women in 2024, more than 880,000 📣 7.5% ethnic minority female-led companies and 📣 more than 1 in 7 (15%) are mixed (both men and women). The bad news is that the funding gap is still HUGE! On average, a female founded business receives a mere £763k in funding compared to £4.7 million for male owned businesses. Let's change that ... I'm pleased to say that I am featured in the inaugural Female Founders Rise Service Based Directory, alongside 150 incredible female founded businesses. It's not enough to just see myself and other women in business pop into your feed every day. Visibility means action. It means investment, empowerment and less humility and this fantastic resource shines a spotlight on the incredible women driving innovation, leading businesses, and shaping multiple industries. You can find them all here - https://lnkd.in/eJ4VydpK If you're a woman in business, what's your visibility journey been like? #FemaleFounder #Marketing #SocialMediaforGood

This needs to change... Did you know: 🤔 A whopping 81% of 11 to 18 year olds can't name a single female entrepreneur. & 🤯 Only 15% of businesses in the UK are owned or run by women. 🤦♀️ I asked my 13 year old and she didn't even name me (though she did mention Selena Gomez and US based company Rare Beauty). Did you also know that: 💷 Up to £250 billion could be added to the UK economy if women started and scaled new businesses at the same rate as men. So, what can we do? ➡ Female Founders Rise along with YeahNice. have launched the 'You've Got What It Takes' campaign to highlight the opportunity that supporting women starting businesses could have for the UK economy. The campaign featuring female founded businesses is all about women sharing their stories and experiences to inspire future women business leaders. To learn more about how you can join a growing community of women entrepreneurs, visit https://lnkd.in/eaq-rQfy #FemaleFoundersRise #YouveGotWhatItTakes #FemaleFounder -with thanks to Emmie Faust & team for creating this!

Well done, Sascha !  It’s fantastic to see campaigns like Female Founders Rise gaining real momentum. "If women started and scaled businesses at the same pace as men, the UK economy could see a boost of £250 billion" – that’s equivalent to half of London’s GDP or three times that of Wales !   From a financial standpoint, supporting female founders is clearly a smart move. According to Boston Consulting Group (BCG) research, women-led startups deliver 78 cents per dollar of funding, compared to 31 cents for those led by men.  As we bet big on Britain, as highlighted by the Prime Minister in his speech at today’s #internationalinvestmentsummit, we all recognise the need to create the right conditions for growth and stability. Now seems like the perfect moment to champion women’s equality, following the Chancellor’s backing of the Invest in Women Taskforce.   It’s time to move the needle and unleash the incredible economic potential of female founders !   Debbie Wosskow, OBE Hannah Bernard OBE, Russ Shaw CBE, Sarah Luxford, Nikki Watkins, Suki Fuller, Brandeis Marshall, PhD, @tlawomenintech

💡Did you know that 81% of young people aged 11-18 can’t name even ONE female entrepreneur? This highlights the importance of visibility - you can’t be what you can’t see. And unfortunately, the number of women starting businesses has dropped to just 15%. We need to reverse this trend! Today, Emmie Faust and her amazing team at Female Founders Rise, in partnership with YeahNice., glooh., and others have launched a powerful campaign to raise awareness and inspire more women to pursue entrepreneurship. 💥 Here’s why it matters: Up to £250 BILLION could be added to the UK economy if women started and scaled businesses at the same rate as men. By supporting women-led businesses, we empower not only the women behind them but also the economy and society at large. ✨ Our mission is clear: - Encourage female entrepreneurship. - Celebrate the women already leading. - Inspire others to buy from and support women-led businesses. Let’s work together to close the gender gap in entrepreneurship and create more opportunities for female founders. 🙏 Please get involved and meet the inspiring women behind this campaign https://lnkd.in/eaFhRks6. #FemaleFounders #SupportWomen #WomenInBusiness #Empowerment #Economy #YouveGotWhatItTakes

Record Numbers of Female Entrepreneurs in Scotland 💥 Scotland is seeing a revolution in female entrepreneurship, and the numbers don’t lie. According to the Rose Review, the number of female-founded businesses has more than doubled since 2018! 💼 In 2021 alone, 5,951 companies were started by women in Scotland. The growth is being led by young women, aged 16-25. This isn’t just a trend—it’s a movement. Are you part of it? If you’re serious about scaling, join us at the Scottish Growth Summit 2025. Let’s build the future together. 🌟 #WomenWhoLead #FemaleEntrepreneurs #WomenInBusiness #ScottishGrowthSummit2025 #RiseAndGrow

🌟Champions of Change - The Spotlight Series! 🌟 What if £250 billion could be added to the UK economy? Guess what—it could! And the key lies with women ♀️ If women started and scaled businesses at the same rate as men, we would unlock an astonishing £250 billion boost to the UK economy! 🚀 This week, I want to put in the spotlight; Emmie Faust founder of Female Founders Rise - what a fantastic initiative! Check out the campaign where 14 amazing women are signposted on billboards around London and Birmingham, all to offer role models for would-be entrepreneurs. Check out the full article in The Times here 👉 https://lnkd.in/dbyTeVxF 🌐 Key message here: Initiatives like this and leaders like Emmie Faust are truly inspiring and instrumental in providing resources, networks, and mentorship to empower more women entrepreneurs. Supporting female founders is not just about achieving gender equity—it is about economic growth, innovation, and driving prosperity across industries. ✴️ Call to action: How are you or your organisation supporting women-led businesses? Whether it is through funding, mentorship, or simply being a vocal advocate. Ultimately this all helps to drive a more inclusive and thriving entrepreneurial landscape. Let us all support, champion, and invest in female founders—and unlock the full potential of economies around the world! #FemaleFounders #EconomicGrowth #InclusiveBusiness #DEI #Empowerment

Only 15% of businesses in the UK are women-led.   Around a year ago I joined Female Founders Rise a brilliant community that supports female and non binary business owners. This community really opened my eyes to the challenges women face when starting and scaling businesses, from being primary carers in the home to a lack of VC money being invested in female-led organisations.   And there are even greater challenges for women of colour.   It’s doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom. £250 billion of value could be added to the UK economy if women started and scaled businesses at the same rate as men. This benefits everyone. Both Labour and Conservative governments have spoken at length about growth... well here is a solution!   But, you can’t be what you cant see. It's why I’m so proud YeahNice is partnering with Female Founders Rise for their biggest EVER campaign ‘You’ve Got What It Takes’ a celebration of women-led businesses. It features real women & NB founders of today, sharing their stories to help inspire diverse business owners of tomorrow.   Lots more content to come over the next couple of weeks. Please like and share and visit the campaign page at femalefoundersrise.com to find out what more can be done to support female led businesses. And if you want to really show support download the purple linkedin banner and update your profile.   #FemaleFoundersRise #YouveGotWhatItTakes   Emmie Faust YeahNice.

Only 15% of businesses in the U.K. are female founded 😱 a steep decline and the lowest that figure’s been since before the pandemic. Up to £250 billion of new value could be added to the UK economy if women started and scaled businesses at the same rate as men. And in the UK, the insolvency rate is 70% higher in male-run companies! By supporting female founders, you’re not only helping women succeed – you’re also contributing to economic growth. The potential economic benefits of empowering female entrepreneurs, calls for action to level the playing field. That’s why I’m sharing the campaign YOUVE GOT WHAT IT TAKES launched by Female Founders Rise and YeahNice. I want my daughter and yours to have opportunities in their futures. #womeninbusiness #femalefounded #femalefounders #youvegotwhatittakes

Two things on my mind this week... 1. Women supporting women. 2. The importance of building your network and ecosystem. And on this week's episode of the Podcast Debbie Wosskow, OBE covers the importance of both! As you may have seen in my post earlier this week, Debbie has been appointed by the Prime Minister to co-chair the Invest in Women Taskforce. Her goal is bold: to make the UK the best place in the world for female founders by creating the largest funding pool for women entrepreneurs. The numbers are stark. Female entrepreneurs in the UK receive just 2% of investment capital. Only 2% of investment partners are women, and only 7% of angel investors are women. This needs to change. Debbie’s mission is to turn these numbers around. She's launching a fund of funds to back female investors who, in turn, support women-led businesses. And as ANYONE who follows me on here knows - I truly believe in the power of ecosystems and networks. The people we connect with and support can make all the difference in our journeys. In fact, I think networking and building my own network has 100% been the biggest contributor to my success! So this Thursday REMEMBER, we rise by lifting others. And as a collective of HUMANS (male or female) let's join forces to build a brighter future for all female leaders and entrepreneurs. Because... When we invest in women, we all succeed. Who's with me? #investinwomen #femalefounders #innovation #supportnetworks #womeninbusiness