A Vision
“Our work focuses on ensuring every woman entrepreneur driving
social and environmental change can reach their full potential.”
A community
“Over the past 16 years, we’ve united women
changemakers and their supporters.”
An evolution
“We’ve expanded from an annual moment of recognition to a lifelong
journey of supporting women impact entrepreneurs.”
Scroll through 5 key moments of the Cartier Women’s Initiative’s Evolution
Launch Of The
Cartier Women’s Initiative
ITS FOUNDING VISION
It started as a one-off gala to applaud and fund women impact entrepreneurs—laying the groundwork for today’s multifaceted program. The core purpose behind this first gathering persists, Sampaio says: to build an entrepreneurship ecosystem that empowers and equips women to design business solutions to the world’s biggest challenges, from the climate crisis to affordable housing.
Global Goals
Since its inception, the Cartier Women’s Initiative has looked to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a compass—focusing specifically on Goal 5’s directive for gender equality. “Women were missing in the conversations about creating social and environmental change,” Sampaio says. In its first year, the Cartier Women’s Initiative awarded $100,000 in total funding to five women-owned businesses across five world regions.
FUNDING FOR Founders
Amount of grant money disbursed per person in 2006
The Cartier Women’s Initiative Steps Up Support
Facing The Gender Gap
“Their top challenge is financing,”
Sampaio says about women business owners, who receive less funding than men and often have to work harder to raise capital (a disparity that worsens for women of color).
The Cartier Women’s Initiative decided to do more to level the field, implementing two key upgrades: increasing the grant money awarded to founders and providing “human capital support” via educational workshops, skills coaching, mentoring and even a scholarship opportunity to attend a top business school’s social entrepreneurship program.
More Funding For Founders
Amount of grant money disbursed per person in 2017
The fellowship is the heart of the initiative, says global program director Wingee Sampaio, but the Cartier Women’s Initiative is also: