When Valerie Schlitt started her own call center company in the family room of her South Jersey home in 2001, women owned only about 25 percent of businesses in America, according to census reports at the time.
Still, she did not think of herself as a trailblazer. The way Valerie saw it, she was an entrepreneur who just happened to be a woman. With an MBA from the Wharton School and a resume that included marketing management positions and consulting roles at multiple large corporations, she didn’t see herself as any different from her mostly male cohorts in the business community.
Twenty-two years later, many of those men would no doubt like to be in Valerie’s shoes. VSA Prospecting has grown into a nationally recognized B2B lead generation and appointment-setting firm, offering sophisticated inbound, outbound, and other call center services for a wide range of diverse clients in healthcare, education, technology, manufacturing & logistics, and many other fields.
On Thursday October 5, we celebrate VSA Prospecting and all women-run businesses when National Women-Owned Business Day launches for 2023. The annual event, held on the first Thursday of every October, was created to recognize the achievements and progress made by women-owned companies and to encourage communities to support them.
October is also National Women’s Small Business Month, but the accomplishments of women business leaders and their companies are worthy of year-round recognition.
“Honestly, at first I never focused too much on VSA being a woman-run business, but when you step back and look at the big picture and think about how much we’ve grown and the progress made by women-owned businesses, it is something everybody at the company can be proud of,” Valerie says. “It’s inspiring to see how far women in business have come over the last 30, 40 years, and there is something special about being part of that community.”
The number of women-owned businesses has been on the upswing for decades. According to recent statistics compiled by Zippia.com:
- 42% of businesses in the United States are owned by women
- An average of more than 1,800 new businesses a day are started by women
- There has been a 114% increase in the number of female entrepreneurs over the last 20 years
- Women-owned businesses generate an average of $1.8 trillion per year
As of 2019, there were 12,943,400 women-owned businesses in America, more than 32 times as many as the 402,000 in 1972. It’s not surprising that many women struggled to start their own businesses in those days. Prior to the passage of the Women’s Business Ownership Act in 1988, women weren’t legally allowed to get a business bank loan without the signature of a male relative. Now, due to the tenacity of women entrepreneurs in starting and running successful businesses, barriers continue to be broken, and each comes with a unique set of rewards and levels of challenge.
There are plenty of reasons for companies to see out partnerships with women-owned businesses. Here are three:
Financial incentives
VSA is certified as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the largest third-party certifier of businesses owned, controlled, and operated by women in the United States. Our WBE certification is beneficial for our clients; the federal government affords tax incentives to companies that partner with women and minority-owned businesses.
Unique business perspectives
Even with all the progress women have made over the years, men still comprise well over half of all entrepreneurs in America. Often, it’s beneficial to travel down a path that differs from the norm. Partnering with a woman-owned company exposes you to experiences, viewpoints, and solutions you might not have otherwise encountered and offers new ways to reach your sales goals.
Promotes diversity
Partnering with a woman-owned business can help you meet your diversity and inclusion initiatives and ensure that multiple voices are represented in your sales and marketing efforts.
Not only is VSA owned and operated by a woman, but we have multiple women in management and leadership positions, including VP of Strategic Partnerships Michele Plunkett, Senior VP of Operations Dawn Stolte, Director of Workforce Management Jennifer Burke, and Senior Program Manager Lisa Doyle.
“It’s extraordinary that this is a predominantly woman-owned and woman-run business,” one of our clients said in a recent Clutch review. “VSA’s employees are super happy, satisfied, and engaged. As a result of that, the happiness and employee satisfaction feeds into our engagement.”
Through the years, VSA’s success has repeatedly earned us recognition from various business organizations. Just last month, we were named to the Philadelphia Business Journal’s “Soaring 76” as one of the region’s fastest-growing companies for a fifth consecutive year. We have earned multiple gold, silver, and bronze Stevie® Awards for Female Entrepreneur and Company of the Year. A few years ago, Valerie was awarded Company of the Year by the National Association of Women Business Owners South Jersey chapter, which serves to celebrate women entrepreneurs. She was recognized for her commitment to women and her success as a women’s business enterprise.
“The awards are always special, but what matters most is how much we’ve grown as a company, and the many different ways we’ve been able to help our clients grow their businesses as a full-service marketing partner, which will often include marketing strategy and planning,” Valerie says. “Accomplishing these goals as a women’s business enterprise is certainly something to be proud of.”
On this National Women-Owned Business Day, we congratulate all the women-run companies out there! Your success is well-deserved, and this day brings awareness to the importance of inspiring women entrepreneurs to continue to empower others to succeed.