Women restaurant owners receive a boost DoorDash in Canada has launched a ‘Made by Women Platform’ to empower more female-owned restaurants.
As the world actively seeks initiatives to push women onto the center stage in business this Women’s Month, DoorDash has developed an interesting initiative that can last longer than just focusing on this period.
“DoorDash is committed to creating more access to opportunities that support women chefs and women-owned restaurants who partner with DoorDash,” says the fast food delivery platform.
According to the latest available data (March 2022) from the National Restaurant Association, only 33% of independent restaurants are majority-owned by women. In Canada, only 17% of small and medium-sized restaurants are reportedly owned by women.
DoorDash prioritizes women-owned businesses
Equal opportunities don’t always come along for women, but DoorDash tries to support this minority group with marketing and giving them “visibility opportunities to help reach more customers.”
There are now also grant opportunities available for these groups of businesses. The ‘Made by Women’ program partners with ‘Monday Girl,’ which provides fifteen $10,000 in grants to Canadian women-owned restaurants.
Both existing DoorDash partners and new ones qualify to apply for the women-owned program, which runs until mid-April.
Against all odds for women business owners
A recent study by the Bank of America found that women business owners have a positive outlook. This despite their circumstances that might be much more challenging. Women entrepreneurs have come a long way to breaking through stereotypes and finding their feet in business.
It was also found that most of the respondents expected growth in their business in 2024 despite facing uncertain economic times.
However, the report also points out that 31% of women-owned businesses experienced difficulty acquiring funding to support their vision. This could be attributed to several factors, including “unfair lending practices” or a lack of access to specific groups.
You are not alone sister
Businesswomen, in general, know the feeling all too well: being the only voice in a meeting surrounded by male-only opinions.
Monday Girl acknowledges that this happens to many women in the business world. “We’ve been there too. Welcome to a community where high-achieving women are the rule, not the exception.”
The private network supporting the next-generation women leaders wants to connect young and diverse professionals. It also wants to include female restaurateurs to have more opportunities for professional networks.
Martine English, DoorDash Canada’s brand manager, says the program has personally “inspired” her to witness how women are connected with merchants.
She believes this initiative will have an enormous impact on women entrepreneurs. “At DoorDash Canada, we’re proud to be a force for good and champion women chefs and restaurateurs. [We are] empowering them to make a lasting difference in the industry.”
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Mia is a multi-award-winning journalist. She has more than 14 years of experience in mainstream media. She's covered many historic moments that happened in Africa and internationally. She has a strong focus on human interest stories, to bring her readers and viewers closer to the topics at hand.
