“How do you balance your role as a company director with that of being a dad?” That's a question that is most likely never asked of a male entrepreneur or senior executive! And yet how many women have heard it?! Stereotypes are hard to shake. That's why the association Les Premières Occitanie has taken on the mission of combating stereotypes by supporting women entrepreneurs “who are building the economic world of tomorrow.”
On September 30, at the Halle de l’Innovation in Montpellier, the association organized a morning event in partnership with the Montpellier Business Innovation Center (BIC) focusing on the theme “Not all unicorns are men,” referring to men-led startups that raise millions of euros from investment funds. This morning event followed a day organized on March 7 at the Espace Gisèle Halimi, also in partnership with the Osez Entreprendre (Dare to Be an Entrepreneur) network.
This time, speakers included Sophie Scantamburlo Contreras, co-founder of SCOP3; Delphine Dorseuil, co-founder of Axeptio, Esclarmonde Leger Alibert, co-founder of Legallys, and Véronique G. Boudaud, a Digital Ecosystem Builder and investor specialized in high-tech. Also present were Alexandre Rochet, activity coordinator and project manager at Crealia Occitanie.
These speakers did not hesitate to challenge preconceptions. It goes without saying that women are quite often astute entrepreneurs. In 2018, the Boston Consulting Group highlighted this point in a report entitled Why Women-Owned Startups Are a Better Bet. The report points out that startups founded or co-founded by women generate 78 cents in revenue for every dollar invested, compared to 31 cents for those founded by men, in other words, a ratio that is two and a half times higher.
This is the result of taking a different approach to risk. “As women, we are more measured and cautious. An investor recently said to me: “What you are presenting to us is not a startup, but a business. I took it as a compliment,” comments Esclarmonde Leger-Alibert.
“Women tend to be more cautious in what they announce,” confirms Alexandre Rochet. Sophie Scantamburlo-Contreras adds: “This differentiates us from men, who tend to be more aggressive in their risk-taking.”
On the other hand, women entrepreneurs can suffer from their thoughtfulness, which may sometimes be interpreted as a lack of conviction. “We only met with men during our pitches. During one of them, an investor expressed doubts about me to one of our partners that had no basis and were totally unsubstantiated,” recalls Delphine Dorseuil, who, after two successful start-ups, now feels she is “trained to take risks.”
It remains true that “money and power are often associated with men,” observes Véronique G. Boudaud. But for how much longer? “As women, we must create our own style of entrepreneurship,” concludes the co-founder of SCOP3.
