Women entrepreneurs flourish in the aftermath of the pandemic

The number of women launching their own businesses in the United States is on the rise, with a study showing that women make up nearly half of all new entrepreneurs since 2020.

According to a survey conducted by Gusto, women represented nearly 50% of startups in the U.S. in 2021 — up nearly 30% since 2019. Experts believe the pandemic drove more women to take the plunge into working for themselves, and that drive has only continued to result in more growth with more female business owners.

Karli Shank is a mother of two with a third child on the way. But she says she's always been drawn to entrepreneurship.

"I was a stay home mom for three years and I knew I needed to start working again," Shank said. "And you know, me and my husband were in the restaurant industry for 16 years, but I didn't want to go back to that. So, I started thinking 'what am I going to do? Because I need to do something soon.'"

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Shanks is a co-owner of Spark the Senses in Centennial, Colorado. It is an indoor playground for kids that she opened in 2024 with her husband.

"I love the idea of my kids being with me," Shank said. "I was like, 'what can I do where I can still have my children with me?' That was also a major reason why I wanted to own our own thing because I can bring them with me."

According to Gusto, women made up 47% of new business owners in 2020. The study also showed that 32% started their business because they were laid off during the pandemic.

"Therefore, when recovery has begun, women are getting into more businesses with more vengeance than before," said Dr. Kishore Kulkarni, an economist with Metro State University in Denver. "I think what has happened in the last two years or so. When the pandemic recovery is kind of complete, we have women coming into the labor force and opening up new businesses more vigorously than men."

Gusto's survey found that 64% of women who started their business in 2022 cited the need for more flexibility, which is something Shank falls right into. And since Shank's business is for kids, she's seeing a lot of other moms bring their kids in while they work on their own businesses.

"They'll come, they'll bring their laptops, and they'll sit down here and work," Shank said. "I do see a lot of stay-at-home moms that have like, side jobs here and there and, you know, we're just trying to make it work, and it's this day and age, you kind of need two incomes."