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Before you go
The first female self-made millionaire in the U.S. was…well, we’re not entirely sure.
The Guinness Book of World Records says the title belongs to Madam C.J. Walker, a cosmetics and hair-care entrepreneur in the early 1900s. The record book chose her because Walker’s fortune had more documentation than other contenders, like Mary Ellen Pleasant.
Pleasant, a successful real estate and gold investor, is said to have had $30 million by the time she died in 1904—two years before Walker started her business. There just wasn’t enough paperwork to verify it.
No matter who was first, both women are remarkable. At the time, many believed women's brains were literally too small to run a business. Walker, Pleasant, and thousands of others proved exactly how wrong that was.
In the U.S., women started almost half (44%) of all new businesses in 2025. The numbers grow even higher when you look specifically at age or race:
- 68% of new Black-owned businesses
- 51% of new Asian American/Pacific Islander-owned businesses
- 47% of new Gen Z businesses
And the percentages continue to grow.
Current views on women-owned businesses
Today, women don’t see entrepreneurship as out of the ordinary. It’s simply another career path. Investors are starting to notice, too. In 2024, they provided $38.8 billion of venture capital to startups with at least one female founder. This number is massive but still only 20% of all VC funding—and it plummets to 1% for all-female teams. In other words, there’s still plenty of room to grow.
For investors, funding women-owned startups is often a smart choice since they generate more than 2x more revenue than male-founded startups (78¢ vs. 31¢ per $1 of VC funding).
Finding—and creating—more paths to success
In addition to sourcing capital, women entrepreneurs also need access to networks that can lead to sales and growth. The good news is you don't have to navigate this alone. Look to organizations that can help in this area:
- Women’s Business Enterprise National Council
- The Small Business Administration’s Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contract program and Women Business Centers
- Local options like New York Women in Business and Michigan Association for Female Entrepreneurs
What’s next for women business owners?
Women continue to face stereotypes—some as ridiculous as those Walker and Pleasant faced more than a century ago—but it’s not stopping them. If Generation Z is any indication—where women already account for 47% of new businesses—the entrepreneurial gender gap will only get smaller.
Whether you're just starting out or ready to scale, the right financial partner matters.
At Flagstar, we’ve been helping small business owners since we opened our first bank in 1859. Stop by a branch and talk to a Small Business Consultant about your business needs, like optimizing cash flow, streamlining payments and receivables, and finding the right financing for your next step.
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Your financial situation is unique. The content of this article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be personal financial advice.