The key to continuing Idaho’s economic success: empower women business owners

Women entrepreneurs are key to Idaho’s economic success, driving much of the extraordinary economic growth Idaho has experienced over the last decade. In the last two years, 621 new women-owned businesses have opened their doors in the state of Idaho, fueling our economy and making our communities more vibrant. Women now own nearly 5,000 businesses and employ over 36,000 Idahoans, paying out more than $1 billion in salaries and wages to Idahoans.

To fully capitalize on America’s current economic climate, it is vital that Idaho’s women entrepreneurs are fully equipped to compete in and contribute to the nation’s economy. In recent years, Idaho has been without a women’s business center (WBC). WBCs provide tools and resources to female entrepreneurs to help them create thriving businesses, and as I dealt with the WBC program, it occurred to me that perhaps there was a disconnect between the program and rural states like ours. That’s why as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, I made a promise to re-establish the Idaho Women’s Business Center to serve female entrepreneurs in every corner of the state.

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