By 2023, the women-owned businesses accounted for 39.1% of all enterprises in the US, amounting to nearly 14 million businesses, an impressive 13.6% of 2019, as these women entrepreneurs thus contribute to the national economy. The f2024 Impact of Women-Owned Businesses report, powered by Wells Fargo, concludes that these businesses have around 12.2 million full-time employees and made revenue close to about $2.7 trillion.

There has been a very keen growth in the business segments owned by women; the sector grew 5.9% from the year 2022 to 2023, especially considering the rate at which the business sector owned by men is growing. The number of women-owned firms has been increasing between 2019 and 2023 to nearly double that of males. This gap had even widened between 2022 and 2023 as business growth on the side of women was 4.5 times quicker than men-owned firms.

According to the report, perseverance by a female entrepreneur does eventually pay off despite the horrible hit that many businesses took as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

. By the end of 2020 when the pandemic was still new, statistics show that women went to start more businesses than they closed, something that sends a nasty signal about the trend that has characterized businesses owned by men during the same time.

Women-owned businesses had a mean revenue of $193,000 much lower than the male-owned business mean revenue of $754,000. However, women-led firms’ growth rate had exceeded that of male-owned businesses with a 12.1% increase from 2019 to 2023, compared to 7.5% for their male business counterparts.

Val Jones, Segment Lead for Small Business at Wells Fargo’s Women’s Segment, said “The contribution of women-owned businesses to the economy is not in doubt,” said Jones. “From the trillions of revenues, they churn to the millions of jobs created, women-owned businesses have emerged from the pandemic stronger than when they went into it. This resilience reflects not only their determination but also the necessary support received from government entities, banks, corporations, and philanthropic organizations, which should continue in the future.

The data in the report bring into sharp focus women in the forefront of entrepreneurship as shapers of future economies for the U.S. countryside and cities alike.