Back

What Changes When a Woman Leads a Business? Everything.

Empowered women lift their entire communities. We believe that creating opportunity leads to more opportunity.

That’s why we’ve helped thousands of women-led businesses from over 200 countries grow and succeed through access to education, networking and capital.

Since 2008, we’ve trained and empowered women in developing economies, with 70% of program graduates reporting higher revenues and nearly 60% of them creating new jobs in their communities.

And now, 10,000 Women is leveraging technology to create a new online learning experience to support female entrepreneurs in more corners of the world through the Coursera platform. By digitizing this free course that has been built to meet the needs of women business owners in developing markets, 10,000 Women is democratizing access to business education on a global scale.

Learn More Enroll Now

Portraits of 10,000 Women

From an entrepreneur building children’s furniture in Nairobi, to a manufacturer of organic ayurvedic care products in Hyderabad, graduates of 10,000 Women are leading and growing their businesses, and creating a ripple effect of impact in their communities. Learn more about some of the program’s participants below:

Kalyani

“The 10,000 Women program taught me how to distill the elements of my business into a sensible, realistic business plan. The program gave me a growth strategy to expand my facility and hire new employees. It inspired me to improve my product packaging to engage potential customers, launch an e-commerce platform which now accounts for 10% of my business and add new product offerings.

I want to build stronger communities, reach more customers, and make this a more profitable business model. As part of my growth plan, I am exploring a pan-India expansion of Ancient Living brand stores focusing on a much wider range of sustainable products. I envision Ancient Living as a global brand creating awareness about ancient Indian Ayurvedic herbs and their current uses.”

- Kalyani, CEO, Ancient Living
Hyderabad, India

Learn More about Kalyani's Story

Ciiru

“I’m most proud of the fact that I dared to do this. I dared to dream. And I didn’t just dream, I woke up and I said I can do this against all the odds.

My main challenge to growing my business was the lack of capital. It is difficult for entrepreneurs, especially women, to access capital in Kenya. Funkidz had reached a point where there was demand for our products, but we did not have capacity to increase production. I needed capital to purchase machines and hire additional employees.

My goal is for Funkidz to have a greater presence throughout East Africa, and I hope someday to grow the company into a global brand."

- Ciiru, CEO, Funkidz
Nairobi, Kenya

Learn More about Ciiru's Story

Varsha

“10,000 Women has taught me to implement new ideas quickly, to get ahead of competitors, to streamline my finances, and to make decisions that will increase the profitability of my firm.

In the near future, I have plans to open two new branches. Going forward, I plan to franchise my brand in other cities.”

- Varsha, CEO, Jus' Blouses
Hyderabad, India

Learn More about Varsha's Story

Patricia

“After the 10,000 Women program, I understood that without leverage you cannot really scale up. So I was able to get a loan and with that I expanded three- or four-fold.

My vision for Promoprint after the 10,000 Women program is to be the best promotional printing business in Nigeria and the West African region, to be able to export, and to be able to provide quality items from Nigeria and be proud of all that we can do here.”

- Patricia, CEO, Promoprint Ventures Limited
Lagos, Nigeria

Clarice

"I felt that I needed funding before the course but I didn’t feel confident obtaining it. Every time I was questioned by my bank manager about a new funding opportunity, I was really scared about interest rates because I couldn’t measure them. During the course, I learned that it was possible to assess funding and ascertain whether it was an option or not for my business. And that gave me courage, I applied and it was fundamental to sparking my growth.”

- Clarice, CEO, Menina de Laco
São Paulo, Brazil

Sarita

“Through the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women program, I learned about the power of capital. The loan I have received has helped me to expand. In terms of production level, I have increased my capacity. And at the same time, I have developed a very good business structure.

Since graduating from this program, I have tremendously increased my manpower. Earlier it was only 10 members, now it is more than 25 members. And I have increased my revenue by 50%. With the loan I received, I was able to expand my business to other countries. After graduating from this program, it is not only the growth for me – it is the growth in the community because I train and mentor many women entrepreneurs in this state, as well as impact the farming community.

I am really feeling proud of myself and of my team – we are making the farming community very happy with the product. Seeing is believing.”

- Sarita, CEO, Navaratna Crop Science
Hyderabad, India

Xiaoqiu

“With a more accurate forecast of cash flow, I am now able to tell my suppliers the potential sales to be generated from a certain commodity the next year when I purchase from them. When I talked to them about my cash flow prediction, they would say, 'Wow, these are impressive figures!' They now have more confidence in me, and have given me better debt terms.

I believe learning about negotiation skills has helped and influenced me significantly. Take the negotiations with my suppliers as an example: highly effective and fruitful negotiation could substantially improve my efficiency. We can build on the results of the negotiations for a very long time.”

- Xiaoqiu, CEO, Wan Shen Hui Co
Beijing, China

Ayodeji

“I started my business in 2007, making moin-moin, which is a traditional Nigerian bean cake. My first clients were limited to family and friends. We didn't have a clear strategy and what we sold was not equal to the effort we were putting in. We couldn't make enough money just selling moin-moin, so we began catering for small events.

My biggest takeaway from the program was the ability to delegate. I have been able to be innovative and creative because now I have enough time to think, to brainstorm, and also to see what competition is doing.

Today, No Left Overs has the capacity to cater parties and events attended by hundreds of people. In addition to my two restaurants, which specialize in traditional Nigerian cuisine, I offer large-scale catering services as well as a cooking academy. When a woman is empowered, the truth is she doesn’t think of herself first. She thinks of the person next door, she thinks of her family, she puts everybody before herself. And you can imagine if everybody had that mindset…you can just imagine what the world would be like.”

- Ayodeji Megbope, CEO, No Left Overs
Lagos, Nigeria

Learn More about Ayodeji's Story