WASHINGTON – The number of women-owned businesses in the U.S. increased by a rate of 1.5 times (50 percent) the national average (34 percent) and account for 29 percent of all enterprises, yet only employ 6 percent of the country?s workforce and contribute just under 4 percent of overall business revenues.
The news comes from the American Express OPEN State of Women-Owned Business Report, the first study to analyze December 2010-released data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The unique analysis, reported by industry, revenue and employment size at the national and state levels, shares a new and nuanced view of the growth trends among women-owned enterprises over the past 14 years. Among the most notable findings:
Women-owned enterprises continue to diversify in all industries. The term ?non-traditional industries? should now be retired given there are few industries in which women do not have a significant presence;
The fastest growth in the number of women-owned firms has been in education services (up 54%), administrative and waste services (up 47 percent) and construction (up 41 percent);
The states with the fastest growth in the number of women-owned firms over the past 14 years are: 1. Georgia (97.5 percent), 2. Nevada (87.6 percent), 3. Mississippi (76.7 percent), 4. Florida (73.3 percent) and 5. North Carolina (68.8 percent);
The states with the lowest rates of increase in the number of women-owned firms between 1997 and 2011 are: 51. Alaska (8.8 percent), 50. West Virginia (17.8 percent), 49. Iowa (20.1 percent), 48. Indiana (23.7 percent) and 47. Vermont (26.2 percent);
You can access the full report at OPENForum.Com/Women
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