According to a study by the European Commission and the International Trade Centre, women in Europe are largely under-represented in international trade. For context, only 20% of exporting companies in the entire European Union are owned, led or managed by women.

Diving deeper, $92 in every $100 invested in Europe went to founding teams that were all men. According to BCG, despite the severe funding gap, start-ups founded and co-founded by women performed better over time, generating 10% more cumulative revenue over five years. However, the global e-commerce revenues are set to reach over $2.7trn in 2021 and will continue to rise to $3.4trn by 2025.

This results from the changing habits of online shopping and the ease of launching e-commerce businesses with minimal investment. These figures are wildly skewed against women, especially when you factor in the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women’s job loss and business closures. The figures show a reverse of results which had been gained in the area of closing the gender gap in leadership and wages, and this could affect future progress in these areas. To close the economic gender gap, we need to change this.

This is one of the underlying goals for creating the Founder Table Club, an initiative of Rise & Lead Women. The Founder Table Club initiative specifically targets small businesses and entrepreneurs. We help them develop and expand their businesses through mentorship and training, and we extend discounts or grants from partner companies. In addition, successful and established entrepreneurs will share their expertise with mentees, guiding them through the online business landscape.

Our first of such collaborative events is with UPS, and this event comes up on May 26, 2021. Rise &Lead Women and UPS have teamed up to help women entrepreneurs leverage the opportunity of e-commerce and succeed in the international landscape. Join us in an engaging discussion and knowledge sharing on how to expand your business beyond borders.

During this event, you’ll be able to engage with female entrepreneurs from Europe and Africa and get first-hand tips from experts in social media, e-commerce and international trade. Participants can apply here: https://solutions.ups.com/RiseLead_LP.html.

Rise & Lead Women will provide additional free live training for product-based small businesses every Thursday to help show entrepreneurs how to build an online business, find customers and establish a strong brand presence.

If you are looking to increase your visibility online, set up your product-based business, unlock business opportunities beyond your borders, and improve your customer experience, the UPS Empowering Women Entrepreneurs Summit 2021 is for you. There will be a panel discussion on ‘The State Of Women Entrepreneurs in Europe & Africa’ with panellists including Ebere Akadiri, the Founder of Rise & Lead Women, Penny Naas, the International President Public Affairs and Sustainability at UPS, Olusegun Awolowo, the Executive Director at the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), and Outi Slotboom, the Director of Strategy and Economic Analysis at DG GROW, European Commission. The event will also include breakout sessions by industry experts who will teach on topics like ‘How to launch a product-based start-up’ and ‘How to ship and export worldwide’ and we will spotlight female founders like Mobola Sagoe. Join us to explore creative ways to collectively attain women’s advancement and close the economic gender gap.