AUSTIN (KXAN) — Starting a business isn’t easy, especially if you’re a woman, and a report says female entrepreneurs in Austin face a variety of challenges.
Last July, Mayor Kirk Watson created the Mayor’s Task Force for Austin Women Entrepreneurs.
The goal was to find ways to make Austin the best place for women to start and build businesses.
Access to capital
The group released a report detailing the obstacles women face and listing 12 solutions. According to the findings, women entrepreneurs say they don’t have access to many mentors or a wider network of experts.
However, the biggest obstacle was funding, with 62% of those surveyed saying access to capital was the biggest challenge they faced.
Among its recommendations were the creation of an angel investor group that would only invest in women-owned businesses, and it also suggested creating an initiative to help female entrepreneurs find affordable child care.
“I want to thank Carla McDonald for her incredible work as Chair, and I also want to thank the rest of the Task Force for their work over the past few months. The work of the Mayor’s Task Force for Austin Women Entrepreneurs provides an important roadmap for making Austin a great place for women to start and grow their businesses.
“I’m already working with the City’s Economic Development Department to identify immediate actionable steps and ways to improve outreach and public resources, including establishing a Small Business Administration Women’s Business Center here in Austin and encouraging the investor community to increase investment in women entrepreneurs. We’re just getting started on this effort, but I look forward to sharing more news about it soon.”
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson
“that was so hard”
You can hear the delicious sizzling of the grill inside Los Chilakillers, where Mina Ibáñez has been cooking up authentic Mexican chilaquiles at her north Austin restaurant for four years.
“It’s a traditional breakfast plate, but you can eat it all day,” Ibáñez said.
But it wasn’t easy for her to get here.
“It was especially tough being a woman in a male-dominated industry. In my case, it was really hard to ask for help if I wanted to get funding to expand.”
Mina Ibáñez, owner of Los Chilaquiles
Ibañez said raising capital has been a challenge as she is looking to franchise her business.
“It was really hard to get a loan from the bank,” Ibáñez said, “so I had to hire somebody. I had to pay someone to help me get a loan.”
The possibility of more support for women is encouraging to Ibáñez, who hopes it will inspire others to pursue their dreams.
“I was 50 when I opened this restaurant and everyone around me said I was old,” Ibáñez said. “I feel empowered. I have so much energy. Never, never give up on your dreams.”
Ibáñez said her goal is to hand over the first franchise to a woman.
