8 Accelerators to Know for Female Founders

1) Amber Grant

Organized by WomensNet in 1998, the Amber Grant Foundation awards $10,000 to a female entrepreneur each month. The foundation awards one of the 12 grant winners an additional $25,000 each year. The application is effortless and requires just a $15 application fee. The foundation’s advisory board looks for women with passion and a good story—if you have both, then take the time to apply.

2) Astia

Astia is a nonprofit founded in 1999 that works to identify and invest in high-potential women-owned startups. It uses a review system based on personal referrals to find, prioritize, and reward the right female entrepreneurs. The organization operates globally with locations in SF, London, and NYC.

3) Eileen Fisher Woman-Owned Business Grant

Clothing retailer Eileen Fisher awards $100,000 to 5 to 10 women business owners each year. Eligible businesses must meet the following criteria:

  • Be focused on environmental or social change

  • Be in operation for at least three years

  • Not exceed $1 million in annual revenue

4) EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women

Ernst & Young’s (EY) program helps women-owned businesses with $2M in revenue or above scale quickly. It is a national competition and executive leadership program that includes year-round education, networking, and events, including two mandatory meetings in California in the fall.

5) Mergelane Accelerator Program

MergeLane is a startup accelerator for companies with at least one woman in leadership. Headquartered in Boulder, CO, MergeLane’s program runs from February to April and culminates in a final event that showcases participant companies to investors and the community. Applications open in the fall.

6) Plum Alley

Plum Alley Investments is a private membership that offers the opportunity to influence innovation and shape the future by investing in private companies. The goal is simple:

  • Get capital to the most promising women entrepreneurs

  • Give a powerful experience

  • Provide ROI to the women and men who invest in them

Plum Alley offers members selected equity and debt opportunities to invest in private companies. They also get custom experiences both online and offline to collaborate, imagine, and transform the world.

7) Female Founders Fund

Female Founders Fund is an early-stage fund investing in companies led by women. The Fund focuses on e-commerce, web-enabled products and services, marketplaces, and platforms. Their portfolio companies all share one thing in common: talented female founders lead each with disruptive and innovative ideas that better serve their consumers.

8) Women Startup Lab

An unconventional accelerator in Silicon Valley, WSLab was founded by a Japanese entrepreneur in 2013. It offers two-week and two-month programs emphasizing coaching and leadership development in addition to company growth for all-female and mixed-gender startup teams. The on-site programs cost upward of $10K, but scholarship and matching programs may mitigate the cost.

Kitty Schur