Women-Led Wednesday

The Backstory: Two years ago we were looking for the right day to launch our own holidays sales. The options were bleak. Black Friday is too consumption-driven. Small Business Saturday felt like a better day for brick & mortar retail.  Cyber Monday is just an easy to place to get lost as a small brand with no ad budget. I thought, with all this talk about elevating women into C-suites there must be a day for the general public to make a special effort to #ShopWomenLed brands... turns out, there wasn't! After some research and digging, I learned the origin of Small Business Saturday and it turns out SBS was created because these small businesses needed an extra boost during the recession. Well, it turns out Women-Led businesses really need that boost too. 

Enter Women-Led Wednesday a shopping holiday that occurs annually the Wednesday before US Thanksgiving designed specifically to encourages YOU and your communities to vote for women-in leadership with your purchasing power: November 25, 2020!

The Why:

• As of 2018 there were more S&P 500 CEOs named James than women of any name - NOT COOL
• Only 3% of business funding goes to women-led brands - WTF?
• “this disparity [in funding] exists despite the fact that startups founded and co-founded by women actually performed better over time, generating 10% higher cumulative revenue over a five-year period: $730,000 for women compared with $662,000 for men.”
• In 2020 an estimated 2 million women are considering or being forced to leave the workforce due to the pandemic. - DEVASTATING FOR THE FUTRE OF WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP

We Believe: At Wild Rye, we believe in putting competition aside to create a more gender-balanced economy, we believe a rising tide really does lift all ships and in the words of Miss Park of Title Nine, we really believe that business really is a team sport.  We're dedicated to supporting our fellow womxn founders through Women-Led Wednesday and the other 365 days a year.

xx Cassie

To learn more about the initiative, we invite you to read the complete press release below. To discover 400+ other women led brands to support this holiday season and beyond, check out the Women-Led Business directory here.

Women-Led Wednesday is thrilled to announce the third annual Women-Led Wednesday on November 25, 2020, bringing together over 400 brands across industries. Women-Led Wednesday is a campaign designed to encourage holiday shoppers to support women-led brands through collective purchasing. Similar to purpose-driven shopping holidays like Small Business Saturday, Women-Led Wednesday is dedicated to supporting and spotlighting a specific business group—women—in efforts to create a more gender-balanced economy.

“It’s more important than ever to support women-led brands and elevate more women into leadership positions,” said Cassie Abel, Women-Led Wednesday Creator and Co-Founder of women’s outdoor apparel brand, Wild Rye. “Why? As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, women are leaving the workforce in record numbers today, which means there will be far fewer women prepared for leadership positions tomorrow.”

According to a study conducted by Lean In titled Women in the Workplace, “as many as two million women are considering taking a leave of absence or leaving the workforce altogether. If these women feel forced to leave the workforce, we’ll end up with far fewer women in leadership—and far fewer women on track to be future leaders. All the progress we’ve seen over the past five years would be erased.”

In addition to the November 25 Women-Led Wednesday holiday, the initiative is dedicated to promoting and uniting women-led brands year-round. The organization hosts a business directory that features well over 400 women brands. The directory is designed to be a public resource for site visitors to explore, discover and shop women-led businesses 365 days a year. 

“When the time comes for these women to re-enter the workforce, it’s imperative that we have a strong foundation of women-led brands and organizations to welcome them back,” further explains Abel. 

According to a survey conducted by Inc. and Fast Company, women founders are disproportionately likely to hire other women. Furthermore, Harvard Business Review reports “Female leaders have been proven to be more likely to coach, mentor, and develop their direct reports than male leaders. They are true talent agents, using feedback and direction to help people grow.”

Women-Led Wednesday welcomes all consumer product brands to join the initiative by creating a page and committing to support the grassroots initiative through cross promotion at: WomenLedWednesday.com. To get involved, follow Women-Led Wednesday on social media, explore and share the brand directory with your audiences and #ShopWomenLed on November 25 and the other 364 days a year.

Website: www.womenledwednesday.com
Instagram: @womenledwednesday
Twitter: @womenledwed
#WomenLedWednesday #ShopWomenLed

Women-Led Wednesday