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This is, with permission, an open thread/clearinghouse for sharing resources on starting or operating businesses or investing.
I believe very strongly that women need to take control of as much economic power as we can, through starting businesses, investing, etc. But although I have run my own business, I have, like many women, I think, been too caught up in domestic issues, especially child rearing, to really research or take advantage of the opportunities that are available.
I have been meaning to start this thread for a while now, and checked with admin a month or so ago, but I wanted to do a very thorough research job first, so I delayed. Now that Ovarit will be closing, I want to get something up, even if it’s not flawless.
I will create some starter categories and add information as I find it, and I invite you to join me in listing as many resources as you can, both general information on starting businesses and investing, and women-specific resources. I hope this will be helpful, even in the short time we have left.
I am in the US, so the information I share will automatically be US-centric, but please feel free to add sub-categories for other countries.
How to Invest and Other Financial Resources
(I know absolutely nothing about investing, so I will could really use help with this one)
General Resources on Starting a Business in the US
The Small Business Administration (government resources and all resources are shared without a guarantee and with the caveat that the world is shifting quite a bit now and organizations and the resources they provide may change dramatically without warning):
The SBA provides advice on starting, running, and growing businesses, as well as loans to small businesses and advice on winning government contracts.
SBA Resources specifically for women:
https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/grow-your-business/women-owned-businesses
The SBA Office of Women’s Business Ownership:
https://www.sba.gov/about-sba/sba-locations/headquarters-offices/office-womens-business-ownership
The National Women’s Business Council
From their website: The National Women’s Business Council is a non-partisan federal advisory committee serving as an independent source of advice and policy recommendations to the President, the U.S. Congress, and to the Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration on issues of importance to women business owners and entrepreneurs.
Getting started
This is not intended to sound patronizing in any way, but I’m writing this in a hurry as if I were talking to myself of twenty years ago: I have owned a few different home-based businesses selling my own products (not MLMs, my own work), and it’s both more complicated and less complicated to start a business than one might think. I’m not familiar with venture capital or fundraising, and I’ve never even taken out a business loan (it was all self-funded, and not huge profits) but I have gone through all the steps of running a sole proprietorship.
It is important to get your ducks in a row. That means getting an actual business license, tracking expenses, handling finances professionally, getting a sales tax license if your state requires one, and so forth. But all of these steps can be handled one at a time. The key is always one step at a time. Remember that plenty of people less smart than you have done all of this and succeeded.
Many of these steps, even in the US, like business licenses and sales taxes, will be location specific and have very different processes. Some municipalities will be disorganized while others will be exceptionally efficient. Don’t let the bureaucrats get you down.
If you don’t have any money
Small Business Trends: Businesses to Start With No Money
https://smallbiztrends.com/businesses-to-start-with-no-money/
Invisible unicorns: 35 big companies that started with little or no money
https://techcrunch.com/2017/07/01/invisible-unicorns-35-big-companies-that-started-with-little-or-no-money/
Forbes has some really good resources.
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/how-to-start-a-business/