October is National Women’s Small Business Month

OnDeck is proud to support and empower business owners across the U.S. This October, in honor of National Women’s Small Business Month, we are highlighting accomplishments from women business owners all month long. Additionally, we’ve compiled some of the best advice we’ve heard over the years on how women business owners can overcome some of the specific financing challenges they face.

We asked some of our female customers on how they overcame challenges in building their business and getting financing. Check out what they had to say below:

Leah Retamozo, Owner and Founder of Bilingual Child Care and Education Center

“Seek out other female business owners, entrepreneurs, bankers, insurance brokers – it’s very challenging to always be facing panels of men who are judging your finances and your ability.”

Sybil Forsythe and Linda Gregory, Co-Owners of Family Choice Home Care

“Female business owners face lots of different challenges when starting their own business, especially financially. I think most of the contacts that we had dealt with were male and whether it’s conscious, or subconscious, I think sometimes the perception is that females don’t always have the business knowledge needed to run their business, or offer products, or marketing, or able to run finances.”

Ellen Rozelle Turner, President & CEO of the William Everett Group

“Starting at about age 15 I helped my grandfather with running his shoe store. There were certain skills he didn’t have, and I was able to help him out. I think it just gave me confidence from an early age that if you want to do something, do something. It doesn’t matter if you’re a girl or a boy.”

Looking for more words of wisdom from accomplished women? Check out “Quick Advice for Women Small Business Owners” for tips from some of the senior female leaders at OnDeck.

As part of National Women’s Small Business month, we invited a number of successful female entrepreneurs to our offices in New York and Denver to share their stories on overcoming challenges when building a business. From financing issues to growing your business at a sustainable rate, they provided invaluable insights into how they’ve gotten to where they are today.

Check out our article, “How She Built This: Tips From Other Successful Women Business Owners”, for some tips from entrepreneurs who have been there on how to build and scale your business successfully.

Looking for tips and advice to move your business forward for Women’s Small Business month and beyond? check out the resources below on setting your business up for success.

A Guide to Financing for Women-Owned Businesses

Women-owned businesses are the fastest growing segment of entrepreneurs in the United States and account for roughly 40 percent of the small businesses in our country. Unfortunately, financing for women-owned businesses can be tough to come by. Here are five tips to help women entrepreneurs find greater success when looking for small business financing.

Crucial Guidance for Women Business Enterprise (WBE) Certifications

Most government agencies, including city, state and national entities, as well as public companies, allocate a certain percentage of business to Women Business Enterprises (WBE) – find out how you can get certified and win key business.

8 Questions About Business Credit: Answered 

You may be wondering what factors are used to evaluate your business’ creditworthiness. Your business credit profile is a big part of this evaluation. Learn more about how your business credit profile is created, and what you can do to positively influence your score.

Debunking Myths About Women in Business 

While a great deal of progress has occurred over the past 50 years, several myths about women in business continue to permeate work culture in the U.S. Today, we’re setting out to debunk some of the most common myths we see repeated about women in the workforce.

5 Lessons Learned From Making the Switch From Corporate Life to Entrepreneur Life 

Jumping from the corporate world into owning your own business can be difficult yet rewarding – check out 5 tips on how to make the transition easier.

Learn more about ways to participate in National Women’s Small Business month at the WBENC website.