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WEV Empowers Women to Own Business and Thrive

July 20, 2011 by

[HTML1] Marsha Bailey of Women’s Economic Ventures (WEV) shares valuable information for women who are starting or growing a business.  Established in 1991, WEV has provided entrepreneurial training to nearly 4,000 women and more than $2 million in loans to local small businesses.

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Marsha has been developing educational programs and services for women since 1983 and is the primary author of WEV’s Self-employment Training (SET) curriculum, From Vision to Venture.  Although almost 2/3 of new businesses are started by women, only 1/3 of those that reach the million dollar mark are women-owned.  WEV’s goal is to contribute to changing this inequity.

Almost every phase of business is covered by WEV services.  In addition to entrepreneurial training and start-up services, WEV offers comprehensive support programs, such as Thrive in 5, for established and growing businesses.  Although the majority of those served by WEV are women, men now enjoy WEV services including the Small Business Start-up Loans. 

Marsha has consulted internationally to help the growth of women business owners and to empower women to thrive as individuals.  Although international programs rely on the specific countries and their regulations, for people outside of WEV’s geographic footprint on the Central Coast of California, Marsha suggests the following resources for those in the USA.  She recommends starting with the Small Business Administration which has various programs including SCORE, Women’s Business Centers and Small Business Development Centers.

Recognizing that starting a business can be all-consuming and lonely, WEV provides networking support in the community as well as internal to WEV.  Round Tables, consultants and business events all provide support through the various phases of establishing a thriving business.  In addition to industry sector and community networking, WEV is active online in social media including their Women’s Economic Ventures Facebook Page and WEV Got Tweets plus a private forum for WEV members to share proprietary communication.

After listening to this episode, please view the video below for more information about WEV.  Join our discussions on Social Impact Marketing’s Facebook Page and rate the episode below.  We look forward to having you here again for next week’s show.  Thanks for joining us.

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About Robin Eschler

Robin L. Eschler, the founder of Social Impact Marketing, started her career in developing foundational marketing strategies for companies of all sizes, from Fortune 500 to individual entrepreneurs and local businesses. She has developed and implemented international campaigns to launch high tech products and services and guided new business owners to successfully navigate the difficulties of growing a business.

Her life-long passion for helping others led her into nonprofit work for over a decade. Early on, she recognized the need for nonprofits to adapt to a rapidly changing world in which technology dominates and for-profit business practices are central to success. Her determination to help social causes in a sustainable way led to her creation of the Women's Radio show Socially Conscious Investing.

Impact investing in for-profits with a mission of social change such as the fight against extreme poverty is a blossoming business sector around the world. With the economic decline, it's clear that Wall Street requires change. Social impact investing addresses that need in a way that provides financial and social ROI.

As the Host of Socially Conscious Investing on WomensRadio, Robin's goal is to educate people about the growth of social impact investing and social venture. Interviews are conducted with socially conscious business experts including foundations and nonprofits, social venture investment firms, micro-loan organizations, investors, educators, authors and social entrepreneurs.

This show's mission is to help change the world through sustainable business practices that contribute to the economy, combat poverty, end hunger and provide better lives to all.

Twice, Robin has been recognized and received the highest honorary award that Rotary International gives, the Paul Harris Award, for service above self. Her community work has included developing local programs for disadvantaged populations such as foster children, troubled teens, and people with disabilities.

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