On Monday, June 1, the Foundation for Women's Entrepreneurship in cooperation with The Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation formally launches the second edition of the Business in Women's Hands program. The organizers have invited 50 women who want to start their own business, and have a definite idea for it, to participate in the program. The program lasts seven months, during which time participants will take part in SkillShare training, mentoring, and networking, which will enable them to build up a network of business contacts already from the very beginning.
"The biggest success of the Business in Women's Hands program are the companies that were established because of it. Already after the first edition, out of the 50 women who qualified to participate, 43 set up companies. Thanks to various types of support, all of them were ready to work on their own, knowing how to implement a business strategy. We hope that the results of this work in the coming months will be 50 thriving new businesses," stresses Katarzyna Wierzbowska, president of the Foundation for Women's Entrepreneurship.
Business in Women's Hands is a program which lasts seven months and consists of three complementary elements: training, mentoring, and networking. The first element of the program is SkillShare, or training, workshops, and individual consultations with practical business training in areas essential for young entrepreneurs. Skills that participants will be able to develop include: business modeling, strategy, finances, promotion, and sales. The second element is business mentoring, during which program participants benefit from the experience and knowledge of experienced businesswomen. The third part, which complements the others, is networking, or the opportunity for participants to establish business relationships and also to exchange experiences among themselves.
"The first edition of the survey showed that business was in women's hands - the results of the work of the first 50 participants and their mentors, whom we continue to observe, were spectacular. It is precisely programs like Business in Women's Hands that provide a real opportunity for supporting women's entrepreneurship and transferring necessary knowledge and lessons learned," says Krzysztof Kaczmar, President of The Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation.
In last year's edition of Business in Women's Hands, 43 of the 50 participants of the program set up their own businesses. The largest number of newly established firms were in the areas of family, health, and beauty. The next group in terms of numbers were creative businesses focusing on design and fashion. The women who took part in the program also set up technology firms, as well as firms offering more traditional products and services. The results of the second edition of the program will be published in December 2015.
