Report: N.H. women-owned firms grow by 37%

The number of businesses owned by women in New Hampshire has grown by 37.2 percent in the last 14 years, according to an analysis issued by American Express.American Express Open, the credit company’s small-business division, reviewed and extrapolated U.S. Census Bureau statistics from 1997, 2002 and 2007 and found that the Granite State’s women-owned firms grew from 27,265 in 1997 to an estimated 37,400 in 2011, making New Hampshire 29th in the country for such companies.The number of people employed by women-owned firms has increased from 33,911 in 1997 to an estimated 37,700 this year.Sales, however, have skyrocketed by some 118 percent to nearly $6.8 million today, from $3.1 million in 1997 – ranking third in the country.Nationally, women-owned businesses have increased their numbers by 50 percent since 1997 for an estimated $8.1 million.U.S. employment in firms owned by women increased slightly more than 8 percent to an estimated 7.6 million in 2011, from 7 million in 1997.The increase in sales by New Hampshire’s women-owned companies was nearly three times that of its closest New England competitor, with sales by Connecticut’s women-owned firms growing by 66.4 percent, followed by Massachusetts (65.3 percent), Vermont (40.8 percent), Rhode Island (28.3 percent), and Maine (12.9 percent).A copy of the full report may be downloaded at http://media.nucleus.naprojects.com/pdf/WomanReport_FINAL.pdf. — CINDY KIBBE/NEW HAMPSHIRE BUSINESS REVIEW