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The Girlboss Foundation’s Mission to Help Female Entrepreneurs

Women talking at Girlboss Foundation event

Not all businesses are successful right from the start. Sometimes a young businesswoman needs a little bit of help to realize her full potential. The Girlboss Foundation exists for this very reason: to enrich the future of businesswomen across the country by giving them the tools they need to get their companies off the ground. From its founding to the present, the foundation has sparked the careers of dozens of women and will continue to do so every year that goes by.

The History Behind It

In 2006, Sophia Amoruso was a 22-year-old hoping to make a few extra bucks by selling vintage clothing on her eBay store. This store, named Nasty Gal Vintage, quickly took off as growing demand for vintage apparel increased her earnings from a few dollars per item to over a thousand in some instances. When this online store grew into its own $250 million business, it faced ups and downs Amoruso couldn’t have foreseen. Although Amoruso stepped down as CEO of Nasty Gal Vintage in 2015 and the company officially filed for bankruptcy in 2016, Amoruso’s business career was far from over. In the midst of these setbacks, she released her book, Girlboss, in 2014. This best-selling memoir inspired young women entrepreneurs around the country and led to the founding of the Girlboss Foundation.

What It Is

Amoruso established the Girlboss Foundation in 2014 with the intent of awarding grants to the next generation of women entrepreneurs. In the process, the foundation has taken on the mission of helping women around the country redefine the meaning of success. By offering the tools and connections needed to begin a business career, Girlboss gives aspiring women entrepreneurs the means to make their dreams come true. Girlboss awards grants biannually to creative individuals who are in the beginning phases of kicking off a business. Each grant includes $15,000 in project funding along with career-building tools and networking opportunities. Since Girlboss Foundation’s opening, it has awarded over $130,000 in grants to women hoping to reshape the future through their companies.

Who Can Apply for Funding

The grants offered by the Girlboss foundation are exclusive to women business owners in the design, music, fashion, music, and arts fields. For a person to be eligible for the grants, they must identify as female, be able to show United States residency, and be 18 years or older by the end of the submission period. The ideal candidate for these grants should demonstrate creativity and innovation in their field and show that they have a thorough plan for their business.