We can say goodbye to the days when women were expected to only manage their homes. Today, women are not only excelling at work but are also running some of the biggest businesses.
In India, we have largely seen the under-representation of women. But things have been changing. The growth of women in businesses across the country has seen powerful effects across our society!
Apart from delivering transformational social and cultural outcomes for women it also boosts job creation and drives the economy upward.
Here are some information and data that we have gathered that give you a sense of the current state of Indian women in business.
Contents
- 1 15 statistics that show women’s position in commerce
- 2 Providing employment
- 3 Women-owned business
- 4 Women in business are equally skilled as their male counterparts
- 5 The number of women entrepreneurs is increasing
- 6 Majority of women are solopreneurs
- 7 Dominating segments in women entrepreneurship
- 8 India faces a large gap compared with its peers
- 9 The youth are more into business
- 10 Women-owned MSMEs
- 11 Revenue scale of business lead by women
- 12 Female entrepreneurs in India
- 13 Where are women business owners more common?
- 14 Women business owners in the world
- 15 Women on Instamojo
15 statistics that show women’s position in commerce
Providing employment
Women entrepreneurs in India provide direct employment to around 22 to 27 million people, according to a survey by Bain&Co.
By accelerating the quality and quantity of entrepreneurship among women, they can generate 150-170 million jobs by 2030.
Women-owned business
According to a recent report, there are currently about 13.5 to 15.7 million women-owned enterprises in India. Although this number is huge, it only represents 20% of all enterprises.
If the government and other organisations take rigorous actions to support women in business in the coming years, this number has the potential to increase to 30 million!
Women in business are equally skilled as their male counterparts
According to a survey, when provided with equal access to inputs, women-owned enterprises produce equally strong outcomes when compared to those led by men.
Women have equal potential as men, but sadly, most are either deprived of resources, or they are stereotyped to only engage in non-revenue-generating activities.
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The number of women entrepreneurs is increasing
Women-owned enterprises are increasing. Over the past decade, women-owned enterprises increased from 14 to 20%, as per government sources.
And over the last decade, the number of schemes and other initiatives introduced by national and state governments, investors, banks, financial and educational institutions to support business among women increased substantially.
Here are some resources to help women entrepreneurs:
- Government funding schemes for women entrepreneurs
- Non-government funding schemes for women in business
Majority of women are solopreneurs
According to a recent study, women-owned businesses are mostly managed by a single person. Only 19% of all women enterprises provide employment to large numbers.
Roughly 71% of the Indian female entrepreneurs employ five people or less.
Dominating segments in women entrepreneurship
More women are rural or urban solopreneurs, according to a recent survey. These are home-based businesses that do not employ workers. And, less than 1% of the total women business owners own scalable enterprises.
India faces a large gap compared with its peers
India is far below its peers when it comes to women in entrepreneurship.
As per the Global Entrepreneurship and Development Institute, India performs below the 20th percentile in the female entrepreneurship index.
And this is far below developed markets such as the US and UK, and even developing economies such as Brazil, Russia, and Nigeria.
Related Read: Top profitable business ideas for women.
The youth are more into business
Data shows that about 58% of the female entrepreneurs were in the age range of 20-30 when they first started out.
Also, about 35% of the women had a co-founder.
Women-owned MSMEs
According to Statista, women-owned little over 20% of all micro, small, and medium businesses in India in FY2021.
Furthermore, women-owned MSMEs are mostly based in rural areas.
Revenue scale of business lead by women
Approximately 73% of women in business report revenue of approximately ₹10 lakhs in a financial year.
Female entrepreneurs in India
A survey by Forbes reported that women entrepreneurs comprise 13.76% in India.
This number has more or less remained the same over the past few decades. This can be attributed to social and financial restrictions faced by women.
Where are women business owners more common?
Studies carried out in 43 countries has shown which countries are leading in women entrepreneurship.
Women entrepreneurs are especially common in developing nations like Angola, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait. The United States has also seen a large share of women entrepreneurs.
According to the study, many developed nations in Europe have very low rates of female entrepreneurs.
Women business owners in the world
Women entrepreneurs make up approximately one-third of all entrepreneurs globally.
According to the latest statistics, there are 252 million female business owners in the world.
Women on Instamojo
Here are some interesting statistics related to women entrepreneurs on Instamojo, an eCommerce platform powering businesses with online solutions-
More women are signing up for online stores
In 2021, Instamojo saw a 14.83% spike in new female users in comparison to a 5% drop in male new users. This shows that women are more eager to start their own businesses now and want to go online.
You can read the eCommerce success stories of our female founders here.
Age is no barrier
More than 30% of the female Instamojo users are above the age of 45! Women are letting go of old myths and embracing online business no matter their age.
For example, Chachi cross stitch, an online business on Instamojo, was founded by 58-year old Hemlata Pal. Read more about how she grew her embroidery business online.
We are proud to call Hemlata our very own Mojo Star!
Thousands of awesome women started their journey with Instamojo and they haven’t looked back since!
