Women-Owned Businesses Are Growing: Are We Building the Support to Sustain Them?
October is National Women’s Small Business Month, a time to celebrate the women who are building businesses, creating opportunities, and reshaping what entrepreneurship looks like.
And the numbers give us plenty to celebrate. According to the 2026 Wells Fargo Impact of Women-Owned Businesses Report, women own approximately 15.7 million businesses in the United States. Between 2022 and 2025, women-owned businesses grew by 12.1%, nearly twice the rate of businesses owned by men. That growth represents millions of women turning ideas into opportunities, challenging expectations, and creating businesses on their own terms.
But as we celebrate how far women entrepreneurs have come, there's another conversation worth having. What does it take to build a business that can sustain that success? Starting a business and building one that can continue growing are two very different challenges. And for many women entrepreneurs, the difference comes down to having the right support in place.
The Growth of Women-Owned Businesses Tells Only Part of the Story
The momentum behind women's entrepreneurship is undeniable, but another statistic from the Wells Fargo report deserves our attention.
Only about 9% of women-owned businesses have employees, compared with nearly 18% of men-owned businesses. Yet women-owned businesses with employees account for approximately 82% of the revenue generated by women-owned businesses. These numbers reveal an interesting distinction between business ownership and business scale. They also raise important questions about the resources, opportunities, and support available to women entrepreneurs as their businesses evolve.
Of course, hiring employees isn't the only measure of success. Many women intentionally build solo businesses, work with contractors, or maintain smaller teams because those models support their personal and professional goals. And that's exactly the point.
Sustainable growth should be defined by what the business owner wants to achieve, whether that means expanding into new markets, increasing profitability, creating more flexibility, or building something that can eventually operate without their daily involvement.
The challenge comes when the structure of the business no longer supports those ambitions. A founder might have consistent revenue, a loyal customer base, and a growing reputation while still personally managing nearly every decision behind the scenes. From the outside, the business appears successful.
Internally, the owner may be approaching the limits of what she can reasonably manage. Revenue can tell you how much a business is growing. Operational capacity helps determine how well that growth can be sustained.
And while the statistics give us a picture of where women-owned businesses stand today, the stories behind those numbers offer another perspective. They show us what happens when entrepreneurs recognize that the next stage of growth requires a different approach to leadership, support, and execution.
For some founders, that realization comes when demand begins to outpace their capacity. For others, it happens when they recognize that their time and expertise could be better spent leading the business rather than managing every moving piece. It's a transition that even some of the most successful women entrepreneurs have had to navigate, including Melissa Butler, founder of The Lip Bar.
What Melissa Butler's Journey Teaches Us About Building Beyond Ourselves
When Melissa Butler founded The Lip Bar in 2012, she began by making lipstick in her kitchen. Frustrated by the lack of inclusive beauty products available to women, Butler set out to create something different. What began as a personal mission eventually became a nationally recognized beauty brand, expanding into major retail stores and generating millions in revenue.
Butler's journey is inspiring for plenty of reasons. She challenged an established industry, persevered through rejection, and built a brand around a clear vision. What makes her story especially relevant to growing business owners, however, is her understanding that a strong vision needs the right people around it.
In an interview with Inc., Butler discussed the importance of mentorship, seeking guidance, and surrounding herself with people who could help her navigate the challenges of entrepreneurship. Her experience highlights something many founders eventually discover: having the determination to build a business doesn't mean you need to have every answer or personally manage every responsibility.
As businesses evolve, so must the way they're led. For Butler, growing The Lip Bar meant developing the relationships, leadership capabilities, and organizational support necessary to take her original vision further.
For a service-based entrepreneur, that evolution might look like bringing in operational support, establishing clearer team responsibilities, or developing processes that allow work to move forward without constant founder involvement.
The industries and business models may be different, but the underlying lesson remains the same. You can own the vision without owning every responsibility.
Melissa Butler's story reminds us that maintaining ownership of your business and accepting support are entirely compatible. In fact, building the right support can be one of the most important decisions a founder makes for its future.
Three Questions Every Woman Business Owner Should Ask About Growth
Melissa Butler's story offers inspiration, but sustainable growth requires more than a compelling vision. It requires taking an intentional look at how your business operates today and whether those operations can support where you want to go. For women entrepreneurs navigating their next stage of growth, these three questions can help identify where additional support may be needed.
1. Can My Business Grow Without Requiring More of My Time?
In the early stages of entrepreneurship, growth often happens because the founder is willing to work harder, take on more responsibilities, and find creative ways to get things done.
But eventually, that approach reaches its limits. If every new client, project, or opportunity requires more of your personal involvement, your business may be growing in revenue without gaining the capacity needed to sustain it.
Consider what would happen if your business experienced a 25% increase in demand next month. Would your current systems and team be able to absorb that growth, or would most of the additional responsibility land on your shoulders?
This is where operational capacity becomes essential. Creating repeatable workflows, establishing realistic workloads, and building dependable support allows growth to become something your business can manage rather than something you have to personally carry.
2. Have I Created Systems That Allow Others to Take Ownership?
Delegation is an important part of growth, but assigning tasks is only one piece of the equation. For a business to operate effectively, team members need to understand their responsibilities, have access to the right information, and feel empowered to make decisions within their roles. Without that foundation, even a growing team can remain dependent on the founder for direction and approval.
Take a look at how work moves through your business. When a question comes up, does your team know where to find the answer? When a project moves forward, is there clarity around who owns the next step? When something unexpected happens, can your team resolve it without automatically escalating the issue to you? These everyday moments reveal a great deal about the strength of your operations. Building sustainable systems means creating an environment where people have the clarity and confidence to take meaningful ownership of their work.
3. Am I Spending My Time Leading My Business or Keeping It Running?
One of the most significant transitions in entrepreneurship happens when a founder begins shifting her attention from daily execution toward strategic leadership. It's a transition that can be difficult, particularly when you've spent years personally building every part of your business. But your perspective as the owner is one of your business's most valuable resources.
When your schedule is consumed by managing projects, answering routine questions, coordinating marketing efforts, and troubleshooting operational issues, there's often little room left to focus on the opportunities that could move the business forward. Consider how much of your week is dedicated to the work only you can do.
Are you creating space for strategic decisions, developing relationships, and identifying opportunities for growth? Or are you spending most of your time managing responsibilities that could be supported by stronger systems or additional expertise? The answer can help reveal whether your current role is aligned with the future you're trying to build.
The Next Chapter of Women's Entrepreneurship Starts With Sustainable Support
The 2026 Wells Fargo data tells an encouraging story about the continued growth and economic impact of women-owned businesses.
Melissa Butler's journey shows us what can happen when a founder remains committed to her vision while recognizing the value of mentorship, collaboration, and organizational support.
Together, they offer an important perspective on the future of women's entrepreneurship.
There is tremendous opportunity in helping more women start businesses. There is just as much opportunity in helping the women who have already built them create the infrastructure necessary to thrive. That support will look different for every entrepreneur. Some will need to expand their teams, while others will benefit from stronger processes, improved communication, or strategic partners who can take ownership of key business functions. What matters is that the business has the capacity to support the ambitions of the woman leading it.
During National Women's Small Business Month, we're celebrating the women who have taken ownership of their ideas, their ambitions, and their futures. We're also encouraging them to think about what ownership should look like in the next chapter of their businesses. Owning a business should give you the opportunity to lead it, shape it, and grow it on your own terms. And building the right support is one of the most powerful ways to make that possible.
Build the Business You're Ready to Lead
At Iris Partnering, we work alongside founder-led businesses to strengthen the operations and marketing infrastructure that makes sustainable growth possible. Whether you're navigating growing pains, looking to expand your capacity, or ready to step into a more strategic leadership role, our team helps turn your vision into actionable systems and consistent execution. You've already done the work of building something meaningful. Let's make sure your business has the support to carry that vision forward.
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