Did you know that, despite accounting for 48% of Hong Kong’s entrepreneurial community, the majority of women entrepreneurs in the city own small- and medium-enterprises (SMEs), and their businesses tend to stay small?
In addition to facing a higher likelihood of investor rejection than their male counterparts, and spending the longest time (an average of 9.7 months) to raise capital compared to their peers in Asia, women entrepreneurs in Hong Kong are also less likely to feel confident prior to pitching their businesses than their male counterparts, despite undertaking a comparable level of rigorous research and due diligence before approaching investors.
This is why, at Foundation for Shared Impact (FSI), we endeavor to provide under-resourced women entrepreneurs with more equitable access to resources and professional expertise through bespoke direct business support and our Impact Jams.
Challenges Facing Hong Kong’s Women Entrepreneurs
On 8 November, we collaborated with our long-time Impact Jam partner, Goldman Sachs Community TeamWorks, to organize a business clinic for six women entrepreneurs of five businesses.
As clients of our direct business support and former and current mentees of our Mentorship Program for Ethnically Diverse Entrepreneurs, Senchu Chemjong (founder of Nepcha), Eeshaanee Shandilya (co-founder of Curiouslyoga), Maryam Khan (founder of Foodie Explorerz), Yulia Kim (founder of Blooms.Forever Atelier), and Emmy Sandt and Sne Roy (co-founders of A Collective Space) brought to the business clinic their respective challenges.
Following the opening remarks by Claudia Anticona, FSI’s Community Connections Program Manager, and Dmitri Potishko, Partner and Head of Equities at Goldman Sachs, a panel was set up for the six women entrepreneurs to discuss the business challenges they faced and their respective reasons for persevering through their entrepreneurial journeys.
To kick-start the panel discussion, the 14 Community TeamWorks volunteers were polled on what they thought were the main business challenges facing women entrepreneurs. To the surprise of the volunteers, the majority of whom thought fundraising was the main challenge, the entrepreneurs highlighted difficulties in product or service pricing and burnout as the most challenging experiences. However, despite the challenges, the women entrepreneurs persevere as they want to create a bigger positive impact on the community, challenge their creativity, and be their own boss.
Fresh Perspectives and Insights to Empower Women Entrepreneurs
In the business clinic session, the volunteers were matched with each of the five businesses to gain a thorough understanding of the entrepreneurs’ respective business challenges, and provide practical recommendations and support ranging from reviewing pitch decks as well as brainstorming new growth strategies, partnership and collaboration opportunities, and marketing strategies.
“I just want to say a big thank you to FSI for setting up the business clinic with Goldman Sachs and including me,” said Yulia Kim, founder of Blooms.Forever Atelier. “Today’s session was really insightful and inspiring, offering a fresh take on my business. Claudia’s advice and recommendations were invaluable in helping me prepare effectively for the meeting. Thanks a lot!”
The Impact Jam was not only beneficial to the entrepreneurs but also Goldman Sachs Community TeamWorks volunteers, all of whom said they gained new knowledge and skills that they could bring back to their workplace. Said Emily Kim: “My key takeaway is that there are so many new businesses with good intention that don’t get enough attention or help to grow to the next level. I am so happy we have been able to give entrepreneurs a different point of view from our diverse backgrounds and skill-sets.”
Her sentiment was echoed by another volunteer, Janice Chung: “Meeting the entrepreneurs and seeing how they found our advice helpful was very rewarding!”
The enthusiasm of the Goldman Sachs Community TeamWorks volunteers and the mutually beneficial nature of the Impact Jam was not lost on those who participated in the session. Said Adriel Heng, an Impact Lab Course intern working with FSI’s Community Business Support team and joining the Impact Jam as a helper: “What struck me in particular was the raw, authentic, and genuine passion the Goldman Sachs volunteers were in earnestly providing advice to the mentees. Further, it was inspiring that the mentees responded with equal enthusiasm and measure in soaking and digesting the fruits of wisdom they gave. That was really the highlight for me!”
“Participating in the business clinic for women entrepreneurs was by far the most eye-opening and educational experience I have had in my internship at FSI,” said Viet Quynh Anh Bui (Anh B), another Impact Lab intern with the Community Business Support team. “The advice and support that our mentee, Curiouslyoga, received from the Goldman Sachs CTW volunteers were incredibly inspiring.”
Our heartfelt gratitude goes to Goldman Sachs Community TeamWorks volunteers, the women entrepreneurs from FSI’s community of ethnically diverse entrepreneurs, and our Impact Lab Course interns for enabling yet another successful Impact Jam, connecting people across sectors to create positive social impact.
Are you interested in participating in our mutually beneficial Impact Jams to provide essential capacity-building support to Hong Kong’s under-resourced entrepreneurs and social impact leaders? Whether it is to kick-start your personal social impact journey, engage and develop your talents, or achieve your corporate ESG and CSR goals, FSI’s Impact Jams are customizable, impactful engagements conducive to creating lasting shared impact. Get in touch with us at communityconnections@shared-impact.com to learn more!
