Report Shows Increase In Number Of Tennessee's Women-Owned Businesses

WUOT | By Chrissy Keuper

Published July 8, 2014 at 4:00 PM EDT

A new study on businesses owned by women shows major growth in Tennessee since the late 1990s.

The number of Tennessee’s women-owned firms grew by 65% between 1997 and 2013, but employment at the state’s women-owned businesses declined by more than 17% during that time.

Still, the report ranked Tennessee 14^th in the US for the growth of women-owned firms and 25^th for revenue, with revenues of more than 71%. The state ranked 31^st for the combined economic clout of women-owned businesses.

Currently, there are more than 8.6 million women-owned businesses in the US, generating more than $1.3 trillion in revenue and employing nearly 7.8 million people.

American Express OPEN’s 2013 State of Women-Owned Businesses Report

Chrissy Keuper

Chrissy served as WUOT's News Director and host of monthly public affairs talk show Dialogue from late 2021 to early 2023. Her first job with the station was as weekend student announcer while earning her bachelor's in Anthropology from the University of Tennessee. She had previously been the station's local host for NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered news programs; occasionally filled in as host for WUOT's Morning and Afternoon Concerts; and won multiple awards for her interviews, feature stories, and Dialogue.

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