Two powerhouse organisations have announced a new partnership to accelerate equity for women founders on the Island of Ireland.
Women in Business is collaborating with AwakenHub as part of their shared vision to create greater gender parity for women founders and investors across the island of Ireland.
September’s Women Angel Insights report from Beauhurst and the UK Business Angels Association revealed that, of the more than 5,000 women making angel investments in the UK, less than 1% are investing in NI.
As a first step in this partnership, the two organisations joined forces to run an event alongside Ulster Bank, British Business Bank and UK Business Angels Association on 27 October focused on demystifying angel investment and increasing the number of women angel investors in NI. Over the past two years AwakenHub’s all-island community has grown to over 2,200 members at various stages on their founder journey.
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This pool of talent comprises those women founders who may be looking to raise pre-seed and early-stage funding and those raising additional investment to scale, along with hand-picked ‘big sisters’ with backgrounds as founders, investors, innovators and company builders looking to give back and get involved in a dynamic, impact-driven community.
As NI’s leading organisation for supporting women in the workplace, Women in Business has been an integral part of the business ecosystem in Northern Ireland for more than 20 years, with a membership base of 7,500 and community of 60,000 united in a common drive to build relationships, develop professional skills and achieve impact which compliments that of AwakenHub and ultimately brings about change in the eco-system for women.
Co-founder of AwakenHub Clare McGee said “AwakenHub is a registered social enterprise on a mission to change the landscape for women founders for generations to come. This can only happen by removing barriers to investment, scale and success. We are thrilled to partner with Women in Business Northern Ireland and are keen to work in partnership with like-minded allies. Together we are committed to real change for women founders and those looking to support them on their journey.”
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Lorraine Acheson, Managing Director of Women in Business NI, added: “There has never been a better time to support women founders and this partnership allows Women in Business Northern Ireland to accelerate and increase its support for women founders. The barriers facing women founders are well understood, as are the opportunities to overcome them. We need a coordinated and focused approach to make a step change and our partnership with AwakenHub will lead to a tangible difference.”
As part of their partnership Women in Business NI is also supporting AwakenHub’s all-island female accelerator lite programme SheGenerate. This 8-month programme of activity for very early-stage founders kicked off in mid-October 2022 with 32 women founders from across Ireland representing a variety of sectors including edtech, DigiTech, health/fitness, construction, design and tech-enabled retail.
Source: Written from a press release
