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Brooklyn has the largest percentage of women-led startups. According to TechCrunch, it is the “national frontrunner” in this regard with 28 percent of women-led startups. This surpasses the national average for women-led startups, which is 15 percent. The reason women-led startups are thriving in Brooklyn is up for debate. According to FORTUNE, “in 2013, the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership identified 500 innovative start-ups that together had created 23,000 jobs, occupied 1.7 million square feet of office space, and boosted Brooklyn’s GDP by $3 billion.”
Female entrepreneurs may be excelling in the city because of the location which provides increased networking opportunities, given its close proximity to Manhattan. People tend to run into career prospects often because of the density of the city. There also isn’t a stigma about working mothers. Working mothers are the norm in Brooklyn and hiring nannies and sending kids to daycare is perfectly acceptable.
Female entrepreneurs are inspired by their peers because being around like-minded individuals makes them feel supported. Women also like to feel that they are on the same playing field as others because it is easier for them to persevere. According to Lexy Funk, a woman who heads the Entrepreneurs’ Organization, “If I didn’t have other women entrepreneurs in the building and neighborhood, I wouldn’t like it as much, and it is great seeing other women doing the same hustle I am.”
In Brooklyn, it is also common to see as many women working as men. It is also not unusual for women to earn more money than their male spouses. The city is home to creative minds who support each other and have the same ideals. Women are free to go after their career goals which just may be why they are so successful.