Victorian small-business women will gain access to practical support programs through the
Showcasing Women in Small Business Strategy launched today by Small Business Minister Marsha Thomson.
The strategy includes initiatives to prepare women to access finance, including:
- a financial manual
- a series of seminars and workshops for women, providing information about the financial structure of a business and how best to approach financiers for funds
- a mentoring program to put women in contact with business role models
- networking opportunities to help business women to support each other.
Thomson says the strategy launch follows research that found fewer women are starting their own business.
"This is a real concern to me because small business is the backbone of the Victorian economy and, until recently, the trend was that women were choosing to start a small business in larger numbers," she says.
"While the researchers concluded women are no worse in perceiving opportunities than men, they found women lack the confidence in their business abilities and lack personal contact with successful women entrepreneurs who can act as role models."