The Minns Labor Government is backing women-led businesses in our state with the launch of Australia's first database to showcase women-owned businesses making it easier for women to connect and explore new business opportunities.
The NSW Government has invested over $190,000 for Entrepreneurial & Small Businesswomen Australia (EBSWA) to support the development of the Women-Owned Enterprises Australia Supplier Network, a hub for women-led businesses of all sizes to increase their visibility.
The Supplier Network will then match women-owned enterprises on the database with commercial businesses or NSW Government tenders under $3 million.
The goal is to have 3,000 women on the database in three years to increase visibility and opportunities for their businesses.
Women are currently under-represented in small business, often due to a lack of access to finance and formal networks when compared to men.
The 2021 Census shows approximately 34 per cent of NSW small business owners are women. In comparison, 66 per cent of the state's small business owners are men. Increasing the proportion of small businesses owned by women supports economic growth and social progress.
To support women in seizing the opportunities, EBSWA has also been funded to run industry-specific procurement-readiness workshops to address existing knowledge barriers and a small business summit to help women connect and learn from each other.
This is part of the NSW Government's wider effort to improve women's economic opportunity and advance gender equality. This includes membership to the WEConnect global women-owned business network so verified women-led businesses can be connected to New South Wales buyers, reaching new markets and customers.
Other work we are doing includes, partnering with organisations in the Supporting Women in Business Grants and Investing in Women Grants.
More information and access to the Women-Owned Enterprise Australia Supplier Network hub is available here: https://www.esbwa.com.au/
Minister for Women Jodie Harrison said:
"The Minns Government is working hard to empower women to dream big, start up and run their own businesses. Many women have fantastic business ideas, and just need a bit of a boost to turn them into something more.
"This new hub is a great way to connect women-owned and led businesses with NSW government tenders, so that we can use our buying power to really boost women's opportunity.
"It's not only good for women, but also great for our economy by increasing the diversity of suppliers."
Minister for Small Business Janelle Saffin said:
"Small businesses are the engine room of the NSW economy, but for too long, many talented women entrepreneurs have been operating under the radar.
"By investing in this database, we are shining a light on women-led enterprises and ensuring they are front and centre when it comes to major contracts and tenders.
"This initiative will open new doors for thousands of women in business - giving them the visibility, connections and confidence they need to grow and compete."
Founder and CEO EBSWA Amanda Rose said:
"ESBWA is funded through a range of sources across government, corporate and project-based partnerships. Women Owned Enterprises (WOE) operates as a dedicated brand of ESBWA and the NSW Government is currently supporting the Women Owned Enterprises project in New South Wales.
"The core goal of ESBWA is to represent and advocate for women in business and entrepreneurship across Australia, ensuring women are visible, influential and economically powerful within policy, industry and enterprise.
"This is not just an announcement, it is the establishment of infrastructure. For the first time in Australia, there is a coordinated mechanism to identify, verify, prepare and actively connect women-owned enterprises into procurement supply chains."
