by Tinhorn Consulting | May 3, 2018 | Entrepreneurship, Women Warriors
Among Native cultures, women are celebrated as the core of family and community life. But what is known about women as entrepreneurs and the impact we have on the local, tribal and global economy?
It’s a fitting question as we come to the end of the 2018 National Small Business Week that began April 29th and ends May 5th.
Recent economic analyses indicate that women’s entrepreneurship is on the rise.* Native American/Alaska Native women-owned businesses are a significant part of this unrecognized economic engine. Over a 20-year period, Native women-owned business grew at substantial rates and contributed billions in revenues (see sidebar).
Other economic data suggests women are also more likely to invest their incomes back into their homes and communities, despite lower wages. It’s estimated that women reinvest 90 percent of their incomes in their families/communities, as compared to 30-40 percent for men. Also, while women perform 66 percent of the world’s work, the earn only 10 percent of world’s income (https://dreambuilder.org). In 2017, two-thirds of Native women were family bread winners, yet only earned 57 cents compared to $1 for white non-Hispanic men (http://nativewomenlead.org).
This is important and compelling information for all tribal communities, as business promoters and consumers. Even as entrepreneurship is growing, we can do more to achieve parity and help our communities address social ills. Whether you support the breakfast burrito lady, buy traditional clothing made by your sister or grandmother, or contract the woman-owned engineering firm, you have the power. Invest in Native women-owned businesses and they will invest back in you, our families/communities and the economy.
Key Trends about Native Women-owned Business (1997-2017):*
- Women engaged in entrepreneurship grew at an extraordinary rate of 114 percent over 20 years; that rate is more than four times higher – 467 percent – for women of color.
- Native women-owned businesses grew at a rate of 201 percent.
- Native American/Alaska Native women created 15 new business firms per day.
- As of 2017, Native women owned firms account for 1.4 percent of all women-owned businesses; an estimated 161,500 firms and employing more than 61,000 workers.
- As of 2017, Native women-owned firms generated an average of nearly $690,000 per firm and an overall $11 billion in revenues.
*Source: “The 2017 State of Women-owned Business Report.” Commissioned by American Express. Http://about.americanexpress.com/news/docs/2017-State-of-Women-Owned-Businesses-Report.pdf.
About Tinhorn Consulting, LLC:
Tinhorn Consulting, LLC is a full-service integrated marketing and communications firm specializing in telling clients’ stories in the most powerful way that has a lasting and far-reaching impact. Tinhorn Consulting, LLC works with clients from a variety of industry sectors, including health, government, education, nonprofit and business. Tinhorn Consulting LLC is a 100% Native American woman-owned business. For additional information, contact info@tinhorn-consulting.com.
by Tinhorn Consulting | Mar 2, 2018 | Entrepreneurship
As a business owner, I’m constantly on the go — working with clients, promoting my brand and seeking new
opportunities to collaborate. While the work never stops, I enjoy taking a pause to give back to our Native
community.
I had an opportunity a couple of weeks ago as an invited business panelist at the “ASU RECHARGE
Conference” for Native youth. ASU hosts this annual conference to engage and empower Native mid- and
high school students to “take charge of their education and invest in their future and community.”
These are the types of sessions I most enjoy, when young Native students are motivated and engaged to
learn about becoming entrepreneurs and seeking their own footprint in this fast-changing business world.
While the session did focus on important tips and lessons learned for these up-n- comers, I was amazed to
learn how some of these students are already steps ahead in the game.
From t-shirt designer and Native music promoter to a 12-year old martial arts trainer, these students already
know a thing or two about taking risks and stepping up. Not only are they turning their skills into a business
trade, they are invested in our tribal communities.
One aspiring teen fashion designer learned to sew from his grandmother; made traditional clothing; and
started designing contemporary dresses. Because he aspired to attend the National UNITY conference, he
utilized his designing skills to raise funds. Not only did he succeed, his ambition was noticed and his tribe
stepped forward to help fund his trip. This year, this same student is developing a scholarship to help
another student in need attend the National UNITY conference.
I’m proud of these young Native entrepreneurs and impressed with their ingenuity. I want to encourage them
and others taking that first step, there is always room to grow and expand your knowledge. Because these
students wanted to know how to take their business ideas to the next level and get help where needed, I
wanted to share some business tips that I have learned as a business owner.
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Start with your passion: Once you identify your service/product, do your research. Is it
a marketable product/service? Yes? Start your business. No? Enjoy your hobby.
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Seek mentorship and support: Look for resources and peers in the same field. There
are mentors willing to help and funders interested in your ideas. Find them. Ask the
person who is where you want to be to become your mentor.
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Respect yourself and others: You are your brand. Especially in Indian Country where
we are all connected, be intentional in everything you do (i.e. social media, marketing,
etc).
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Promote yourself: You are always marketing yourself, whether you know it or not. Be
positive.
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Give back: Just as you needed help, there are others like you needing advice and
support.
Often in my business, I challenge my peers and clients to be open-minded, to think outside the box to
approach and solve problems. This time, these young Native entrepreneurs challenged me to change my
own thinking of the state of entrepreneurship in Indian Country. The entrepreneurial spirit is alive among the
young Native generation and they are out there, showing up and doing it.
