Women entrepreneurship has seen its downfalls in the present year, where, according to a study, the current ratio of business owners, men is to women, stands at merely 100:7. However, the ratios did not stop these 8 brilliant women entrepreneurs who are killing it in the year of success, the year 2020.
According to a publication issued by Startup India (1), women constitute 48.9% Indians, and there are over 35% of women who are directors of startups. Moreover, the key takeaways from the study also showed that around 58% of the women entrepreneurs commenced their business between the ages of 20 and 30 with Delhi NCR, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, & Hyderabad being the top Indian cities with women entrepreneurs.
Top 8 Startups Founded by Women Entrepreneurs in 2020
Here, take a look at our top 8 women entrepreneurs in the startup ecosystem who’ve made a mark with their innovative and creative end-to-end product solutions!
1. SpaceBasic by Madhavi Shankar
Founder: Madhavi Shankar
Industry: IT & Services
Founded: 2017
Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka
Madhavi Shankar, a Doctorate Degree holder in IT, founded SpaceBasic, which is the first technology forward, an interactive networking platform for day to day communications and task management within Student Housing & Co-living Communities. With the startup, Madhavi aims at helping students experience digital and secure living while getting unbiased equal access to opportunities from global corporate partners via the company’s ‘Corporate Connect’ offering.
Note: The company is also a part of the Pledge 1% movement where the organization pledges 1% of their profits, time & software to invest back into the community and towards educating women each year.
2. School of Future by Aditi Agrawal
Founder: Aditi Agrawal Industry: E-Learning Founded: 2018 Headquarters: Noida, Uttar Pradesh
Aditi Agrawal’s education tech startup School of Future runs on a mission to future proof students by preparing them with future-ready skills in the fast-paced world of automation and globalization. The platform will be training kids on skills like Emotional Intelligence, Design Thinking, and Financial Literacy, at the age when humans are fastest at grasping context and learning new skills. Additionally, their Entrepreneur’s Academy program will motivate the students to develop their ideas into a business in 100 days.
Note: According to a report by IFTF ( Institute for the Future), about 85% of jobs that will exist in 2030 have not been invented yet.
3. Archiipedia by Arti Sudhir Nair
Founder: Arti Sudhir Nair Industry: Architecture, Internet Founded: 2018 Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka
Archiipedia is an award-winning online listing and advertising platform for architects, interior designers, professionals, vendors, and clients of building construction industry launched by the Pune University graduate Arti Sudhir Nair. The online platform allows businesses to display & update pictures of their work, products, provide reviews and recommendations, thereby to help promote professionals and venders by handling their digital marketing needs.
4. Bare Necessities by Sahar Mansoor
Founder: Sahar Mansoor Industry: Sustainable Development, E-Commerce Founded: 2016 Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka
Sahar Mansoor’s Bare Necessities Zero EWaste India is an initiative towards building conscious environmental products for their users. It eliminates the critical element holding all the entire products market, plastic, from its products-line, thereby, contributing to a plastic-free and chemical-free range of products. Harper’s Bazaar has even recognized Sahar’s startup as one of the top 5 handcrafted-in-India brands.
Note: Bare Necessities include personal care, homecare, lifestyle, and gifts products to its users to shop from.
5. Khenshu by Aishwarya Reddy
Founder: Aishwarya Reddy Industry: Furniture Founded: 2019 Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka
Aishwarya Reddy’s startup Khenshu is a handcrafted furniture brand that focuses on creating a palatial luxury experience which can be embedded in everyday living. Khenshu started off as a platform to showcase dying art forms, and through the months, evolved into a design house fusing various art forms and creating masterpieces. Their major product mix consists of handcrafted furniture made of seasoned teak covered with the purest form of Silver.
6. Reema’s Garden by Reema Gopalan
Founder: Reema Gopalan Industry: Gardening Founded: 2019 Headquarters: Pune, Maharashtra
Reema’s Garden is Reema Gopalan’s gardening startup that aims at teaching the art of gardening to people by holding workshops for beginners, advanced, experts, and kids. Reema started her journey as a blogger, which later turned her hobby into a full-time job that helps battle urban problems like stress, pollution, waste management, etc. Reema holds a strong belief that gardening helps an individual become better people, even at a subconscious level.
7. SuTa by Sujata and Taniya Biswas
7. SuTa by Sujata and Taniya Biswas
Founders: Sujata and Taniya Biswas Industry: Apparel & Fashion Founded: 2016 Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
The sister duo of Sujata and Taniya Biswas’ fashion startup SuTa is a brand that aims at revolutionizing and bringing back the wave of traditional outfits- saree- in the country they were born in. The company assists those workers who were being forced to leave their jobs to move to the city to make more money by working in professions that are opposite of what they have been doing. Every saree offered by SuTa goes through a unique journey of creation and displays the authenticity for its customers.
8. Rimagined by Shailaja Rangarajan
Founder: Shailaja Rangarajan Industry: Sustainable Development Founded: 2015 Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka
Shailaja Rangarajan’s social startup Rimagined aims to promote conscious consumption of day to day materials while creating livelihoods for women in the urban poor and rural sectors. The startup repurposes all types of waste products and brings them back in the consumption cycle, creating a circular economy. The company is working with different kinds of waste materials, intending to turn into an upcycling conglomerate, and offer upcycled alternatives for most of the products.
Conclusion
It requires courage to start a business, primarily if you hail from a non-business background. It’s a risk that can take you up high or can fail you adversely at the same time. As a woman, sexism is an additional barrier that you need to battle. These were some of TimesNext’s top 8 women entrepreneurs who have been killing it in the entrepreneurial space through their innovative and impactful startups. We wish them all the best for their future endeavors and hope they taste success in every pedestal of their startup journey.
FAQs
- What is the ratio of male to female business owners in India? According to a study, the current ratio of business owners, men to women, stands at merely 100:7 in India.
- Where do most women entrepreneurs in India start their businesses? The top Indian cities with women entrepreneurs are Delhi NCR, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, and Hyderabad.
- What is SpaceBasic, and who is its founder? SpaceBasic is a technology-forward interactive networking platform founded by Madhavi Shankar. It helps students with day-to-day management tasks in Student Housing & Co-living Communities.
- What skills does the School of Future aim to teach young students? The School of Future focuses on teaching skills like Emotional Intelligence, Design Thinking, and Financial Literacy to young high-school students.
- What is the mission of Rimagined, a social startup by Shailaja Rangarajan? Rimagined aims to promote conscious consumption of day-to-day materials while creating livelihoods for women in the urban poor and rural sectors by repurposing waste products into upcycled alternatives.
