A female founders’ summit is set to be staged in Edinburgh to boost investment opportunities for women in business.
The inaugural Female Founders Growth Summit at RBS headquarters in Gogaburn on September 5 will focus on women planning to scale their businesses – helping them connect with key investors and provide learning and networking opportunities.
Hosted by Pathways Forward, an initiative developed by businesswoman Ana Stewart, and Female Founders Rise, the all-day event will seek to join Scotland’s female entrepreneurs with the wider UK community.
Stewart said: “The Female Founders Growth Summit will be the first ever of its kind in Scotland, and we’re excited to bring so many talented women founders together alongside private, angel, and institutional investors from across the UK.
“Centred on growth and scaling, there will be a mix of keynote talks, breakout sessions, panels and workshops looking at areas including the types of funding available to support growth trajectories.
“Attendees will also get to hear first hand from women entrepreneurs who have built high value companies. This is about joining the dots for our female founders, opening doors and equipping them with the right tools to scale their businesses. At the same time, it enables investors and finance providers to engage and support these founders.”
Emmie Faust, founder of Female Founders Rise, said: “We’re very excited to come back to Scotland and to partner with Pathways Forward for this event. It’s so important to bring female founders together to celebrate, connect and learn from each other. We’ve got an incredible line up for the day with some brilliant speakers, workshops, panels and office hours with investors. We can’t wait to get everyone together in one room for a mega day of growth.”
Speakers and panelists will include female entrepreneurs including FinnCap founder and The Secret Sauce author Sam Smith, who grew her venture capital business to over £50 million, Darina Garland, co-founder of global brand Ooni and the world’s No.1 pizza oven company, Lucinda Bruce-Gardyne, Genius Foods founder and the inventor of gluten-free bread, and Carcinotech CEO and founder Ishani Malhotra, recently voted UKBAA’s Entrepreneur of the Year.
The key sponsors for the summit are Scottish National Investment Bank, RBS, Scottish Enterprise, British Business Bank, and Eos, while the community partners for the summit are Dechomai and AccelerateHER. Former BBC broadcaster and Freer Consultancy associate Dr Vanessa Collingridge will be the on stage host on the day.
Over 250 attendees are expected at the Female Founders Growth Summit, and founders and investors can now purchase tickets at https://lu.ma/5gmt7ovi and for those that cannot attend live-streaming will be in place.
