The number of women-owned business climbed in Connecticut over the past two decades, but not as much as it did in other states, according to an analysis based on federal data.
Connecticut is ranked 43rd in the nation for overall growth in women-owned firms over the past 20 years, according to the seventh annual State of Women-Owned Businesses Report, commissioned by American Express OPEN. Connecticut had 113,100 women-owned firms in 2017, compared to 72,393 in 1997, a 56 percent increase, the report states.
Women-owned businesses in the state employ 95,300 and contributed roughly $16.4 billion in GDP in 2017, the report found.
The report relies on the U.S. Census Bureau’s survey of business owners and statewide factors in changes in Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Nationally, the number of women-owned firms increased by 114 percent from 1997 to 2017, compared to just a 44 percent increase among all businesses.
