Square Root is a proud certified Women Owned business because of founder and owner, Ellie O’Brien. What does it mean to be Women Owned certified like Square Root and roughly 13 million other businesses in the United States? This article will overview how female business owners go about getting certified, and how female owned and operated businesses are growing in the United States.
To be eligible for certification, a business must be at least 51% woman-owned and operated. This means a woman or several women must be the ones managing daily operations, making decisions for the company, and holding the highest officer positions available. There are two certification types for small, female owned businesses specifically: woman-owned small business, and economically disadvantaged woman-owned small business. To qualify as a woman-owned small business (WOSB) a business must be for-profit and meet the requirements of a small business, as well as have a female front runner. To qualify for an economically disadvantaged woman-owned small business (EDWOSB) a business must meet all of the credentials as a WOSB, as well as additional economic requirements. The business owner’s personal net worth must be under $750,000 and their adjusted gross income average over the past three years must be less than or equal to $350,000.
If a business is eligible, you can apply for certification through self-certification or a third-party certification process. Neither method is preferred or ‘better’, it just depends on personal preference. Self-certification is completely free and one can apply directly through the U.S. Small Business Administration. If choosing to use a third-party organization for certification, the four approved organizations are: the El Paso Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the National Women Business Owners Corporation, the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce, and the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council.
The purpose of this certification is to set aside special programs to encourage female business owners. In 2018, women-owned firms only made up 19.9% of all firms that employed people in the United States, however, these numbers are steadily growing. According to the latest State of Women-Owned Businesses Report, the number of female owned businesses is growing by more than half a million every year. This certification process helps encourage more female owned enterprises and draws attention to women whose companies are generating over $1.9 trillion in revenue and employing over 9.4 million people.
Square Root is so lucky to have a dedicated, passionate, and hard-working owner like Ellie O'Brien, and to all the other female business owners out there, your hard work, commitment, and creativity does not go unnoticed. #girlpower
Sources:
https://www.uschamber.com/co/start/strategy/get-certified-woman-owned-business
https://aofund.org/resource/women-owned-business-certification/