The New Power Girls

NewPowerGirls.com Now NPGDaily!

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 11:18:00 -0400

This morning an exciting change happened with our transmedia project, The New Power Girls! What started (and continues) as a popular series on the Huffington Post grew and evolved to become a standalone companion site, which has grown and evolved once again! Starting today, TheNewPowerGirls.com is now NPGDaily, a blog that covers women startups and existing companies, traditional companies using the internet/new media in new ways, and trends in the market as it relates to entrepreneurs. In addition to daily articles, we’ll continue the weekly series on Huff Post, weaving in commentary and anecdotes from the more than 500 women on our founder list — one of the first true interactive media projects on the web.

I had been researching on the history of women in corporate business for a book project when I stumbled across what appeared to be a trend — a new breed of women who didn’t just want to work at high profile companies, but own them. When Meghan Cleary and I started out with the Huff Post series in November 2008, the goal was to help bring exposure to this, and women founders everywhere. As entrepreneurs ourselves, we knew first hand how important and valuable exposure can be — and how few media outlets cover women entrepreneurs. Take a Google News search and you’ll see what we mean. Those that do cover women in business tend to limit it to either women at major companies that they don’t own, or women companies earning $1 million in sales. It leaves out hundreds of thousands of women founders, innovators and influencers. That’s why NPGDaily is here.

We’re not stopping there! The first of our “unconference” events and meet-ups are already underway and will be announced soon, and we’re cooking up all kinds of other stuff too. New Power Girls is based on a real, existing group of more than 200 high level founders that criss cross the country and are all friends. We hope to recreate this for women founders and execs everywhere here! Please visit us at the new site as well discontinue publishing here. – Patricia

Vote For A Power Girl! Help Woman-Owned Happy Baby Win "Shine A Light"

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:19:03 -0400

When American Express came our way to talk about its “Shine a Light” program with NBC, we were instantly interested. The program, which aimed to help bring much-needed exposure to small businesses, invited companies to participate for the chance to win $100,000 in grant and marketing support — enormous whether you’re a startup or have been around for years. Founders shared their stories via the Shine A Light site with the public invited to vote on the small business that most inspired them. More than 4,000 small companies were nominated across the country with three finalists chosen with help from TV personality and entrepreneur Ellen DeGeneres, fashion designer and entrepreneur Diane von Furstenberg, and MSNBC’s small business expert JJ Ramberg. AMEX has long supported small businesses through a variety of programs over the years, and had hoped that with Shine A Light they could not only give founders the support they need, but help bring much-needed exposure to small business (which is often overlooked by the media).

Among the finalists selected is women-owned Happy Baby organic baby foods, which was launched on Mother’s Day just three years ago by social entrepreneur Shazi Visram who, like us, wanted to make change through business. Today, she’s grown her company to more than 5,000 stores nationwide and a cult-like following — total Power Girl! Vote for Shazi here.

New Power Girls love Skincare

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 07:00:00 -0400

I am constantly searching for the right skincare regimen — something that is simple to use (i.e. not 20 steps!), that works for when I am LA (where the desert sun. overly chlorinated water and dryness take it’s toll) and in NYC, and when I travel (long haul flights in airplane air and touching down in a different climate altogether).

This summer I had the pleasure of being able to try out a bunch of amazing LA-based skincare lines, a few of which are women founded and owned (Kate Somerville and Evan Healy).

And I had the immense pleasure of experiencing Ole Henricksen’s tucked away spa on Sunset, which if you are a woman entrepreneur you know the value of one hour away at the spa — (can feel like a vacation if you aren’t able to get away and often they make you turn off your Blackberry which is bliss in itself!) and I tell you the Giovanni Organic Towelettes are pure genius for travel, for kids and for giving your feet a little treat after you’ve been in Stilettos for eight hours. We could have used some after our Emmys adventure!

Malibu Wellness rocks the Vitamin C like no other I have ever tried — literally makes you glow.

Enjoy!

NPG On Huff Post This Week: 20 Women Founders To Watch

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:02:44 -0400

From this week’s New Power Girls series on The Huffington Post, here’s what Meghan and Patricia have to say about the next group of ten of the NPG 20 Women Founders To Watch:

Patricia

The goal of creating a list of women companies to follow was inspired by how other media regularly covers companies like Google, Facebook, etc. Right now, there isn’t a lot of media covering women startups and existing companies. By no means will this be a total list, or a final list — we’ll constantly be searching and adding new women founders to cover.

Meghan

The NPG 20 is just the beginning of women founded, women owned companies who are doing something amazing in their niche, created a niche, innovated, put their work across different platforms, and are women who inspire and who we admire. It is just the beginning of the companies we will be following. Be sure to write us with your suggestions of women-owned companies who are doing interesting things. We want to connect with as many as we can!

WHAT MAKES AN ENTREPRENEUR?

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 07:00:00 -0400

Very interesting story in Business Week about a woman entrepreneur Sue Drakeford. check it out.

—Meghan

NPG 20: DivineCaroline

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 11:26:48 -0400

Real Girls Media founder Kate Everett Thorp’s legacy in business is lined with impressive roles at top companies and doesn’t stop there. She’s held high level roles with top companies including AKQA and McCann Erickson, and the agency that she founded, Lot21, was acquired by media giant Carat Interactive. She also co-founded the prestigious Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB), has received industry awards from the likes of Advertising Age, OMMA and the AAF Hall of Achievement for execs under 40 and two of the companies in her charge have won Agency of the Year. But, it’s RGM’s top site DivineCaroline.com that may be Everett Thorp’s best work yet. The platform, which provides women a way to reach out, connect, and share via the web is one of the most respected in the business. Launched in 2007, it’s garnered near instant attention, including investment stake from publishing giant Meredith Corporation just a year later, recently landed a campaign with Propel water, and has seen its traffic swell to nearly 5.3 visitors this year. What we admire about Kate is how she’s leveraged a career in the industry to accomplish amazing feats and never looked back. She’s proof that you can start with A, then move to B, C, and D, and rock the house every step of the way. A true change agent who knows how to leverage the market and past accomplishments, she’s without a doubt one of the women founders to watch.

To see the complete first 10 of our 20 Women Founders to Watch list,visit here. We’ll unveil the second 10 on our Huff Post column next week, and continue to cover the companies along with other news and industry moves here.

Designer Tory Burch To Lend Women Entrepreneurs A Hand

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 10:45:42 -0400

Designer Tory Burch doesn’t just outfit hundreds of thousands of American business women with chic and stylish clothes that help them look and feel their best. Now, the female fashion founder is lending a hand to empower women entrepreneurs too. In a guest post for Fortune Magazine this past week, she unveiled the new Tory Burch Foundation, which is dedicated to “help mothers provide for their children,” inspired in part by her three sons and her own dream of helping women entrepreneurs. Recognizing that moms across the globe struggle to support and provide for their children, Burch saw an opportunity to get involved. The foundation will focus in part on microfinance loans and other strategies to help small business owners launch and sustain companies. It’s already been proven that microfinance can help low income people — Kiva.org is a great example of that model. As Burch notes in her article, loan amounts are larger in the U.S. than developing countries, but through research has learned that only 2% of people who could benefit from microfinancing have access. That leaves out a large gap the designer hopes to fill. Burch goes on to share additional insight about her plans for the foundation. It’s an inspiring read. To learn more about the Tory Burch Foundation, you can visit it online here.

Tribe's iPhone App Nabs Fast Company, Top Spot On Apple's Rank

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:24:27 -0400

Nothing inspires me more than an entrepreneur who has the hustle on and knows how to adapt. It doesn’t matter if its a man or woman — I’m equally moved by anyone who is doing things in new ways and taking the market on. This past week, Tribe’s new “Start Your Own Company” iPhone application for entrepreneurs made Fast Company’s web coverage. Since the apps launch on September 10, it’s moved steadily up Apple’s ranking chart — a slot away from the top ten this morning. No easy feat considering the hundreds of iPhone applications in the market. This in in addition to being a $5 million branding company with clients like UPS, Coca-Cola, and Porsche. Founder Elizabeth Cogswell Baskin is about as Power Girl as it gets — she started the company in 2002 as a virtual agency via her screened porch, is very cool and very well connected. When we caught up with her via email today to get the story behind the launch of the agency’s iPhone app, she said simply put she was motivated by encouraging people to start their own companies (particularly women!) and the “accidental entrepreneurs” who are launching startups because they can’t find work. Congrats to Elizabeth and the Tribe team for rocking it! — Patricia

NPG 20: The Budget Fashionista

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 10:57:00 -0400

In 2004-2005, a small group of women founders with digital media companies formed a sort of unofficial alliance to stick together in business. Today, that group has grown to include more than 200 women, and still includes the four original founders it had back then (including NPG’s Patricia). One of the most dynamic in the group also happens to have the largest and most successful fashion blog on the web. She’s never raised capital, has captured the attention of major brands and her company has been earning revenue for years. She’s also an author and television personality who has been in more than 500 media outlets including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CNN, Today Show, Redbook, People and others. It doesn’t stop there. She also holds honors degrees from Yale and Rutgers University and has received top nods for her work from outlets like Silicon Alley Reporter (now Business Insider), The Chicago Tribune and MSN Money. That’s why Kathryn Finney of the Budgetfashionista.com/Simply Good Media is one of the top 20 women founders we’ll be tracking here. What we love about Kathryn goes beyond her business success. She’s also a major style setter, a fantastic wife, daughter and friend. She doesn’t just know the business, she was one of the early female founders in the category, and in the six years she’s owned her company has become one of the most respected women in the industry.

NPG 20: Blurb

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:03:27 -0400

When we set out to identify the 20 women founders and companies we wanted to regularly track here we reached out to readers and email subscribers to share who they felt were women to watch. No other company was mentioned as much as Eileen Gittins of Blurb.com. Gittins nabbed major tech industry cred from working in high level positions at Kodak, Wall data, and several other companies as well as advisory and board member positions. But it was a love for photography that moved her to launch what’s becoming one of the most interesting startups in the web 2.0 space. A micro-publisher of sorts, Gittin’s startup enables anybody to create and publish a beautifully designed and created photo essay book — like nabbing a book deal at Harper Collins without the hassle. Today, Blurb.com fills the gap, providing a simple, low cost publishing service that turns anybody into an author, from bloggers, to parents, to marketers and more. What we admire about Eileen isn’t just her high tech and business accomplishments, but the passion that you can see and feel behind her project. Not only has she created an incredible platform with the potential to take book publishing into a new future, but its obvious in every way that she’s empowering people. It’s no wonder we saw so many Power Girls suggesting her for the NPG 20!

To see the complete first 10 of our 20 Women Founders to Watch list, visit here. We’ll unveil the second 10 on our Huff Post column next week, and continue to cover the companies along with other news and industry moves here.

1. Backstage at the Emmys. 2. Meghan on the red carpet. 3. My...

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 11:04:00 -0400

1. Backstage at the Emmys. 2. Meghan on the red carpet. 3. My Emmy outfit in the TV Guide trailer. 4. Celebrity dresses on parade

NPG At The Emmys Red Carpet

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 11:00:00 -0400

Power Girls were everywhere at the Emmys in Los Angeles yesterday! Drew Barrymore, Sally Fields, Guiliana Depandi, Tina Fey, Heidi Klum and so many great women doing big things turned out for TV’s hottest night. We spied dozens as we perched near the TV platforms, where it seemed virtually everybody convened to grab an interview with E’s Depandi under the blistering, direct heat. Hundreds of stars behind the stars, from producers to publicists and managers escorted celebrities and made sure productions went without a hitch. Meghan was on hand as TV Guide’s correspondent to dish on hot star shoe trends (including outfitting me in the exact pair of black strappy Christian Louboutins Heidi Klum wore to the Golden Globes this year). After five hours of baking under the sun, we ducked into the media lounge to nosh on dinner compliments of Wolfgang Puck. But, by far the biggest head turner of the night were Meghan’s purple ankle bow booties which seemed to stop everybody in their tracks. Congrats to the women who walked away with awards last night. Power to the fempire! - Patricia

What We're Reading

Sun, 20 Sep 2009 06:44:00 -0400

Google’s Letter to the FCC Regarding Google Voice for iPhone — Google Public Policy Blog

Memo to Startups: You’re Supposed to Be Changing The World, Remember? — TechCrunch

Official: FCC to Propose “Net Neutrality” Rules — Associated Press

Media Pros Say Journalism Has Improved in the Internet Age — Paid Content

NPG 20: The Huffington Post

Sat, 19 Sep 2009 10:12:01 -0400

With a said 22 million unique visitors a month and the record as the most linked to blog on the internet, it’s not a surprise that entrepreneur Arianna Huffington has garnered major attention for her company, The Huffington Post. Launched in 2005, the site has more than 3,000 high level bloggers ranging from celebrities to political figures to experts of all types. Among those that have contributed include Barack Obama, Hilary Clinton, Ari Emanuel, Nancy Pelosi, Michael Moore, John Kerry, Jamie Lee Curtis and many more. Huffington raised capital in 2006 and again in 2008, and has nabbed prestigious industry awards from Time Magazine, The Observer and Forbes. Considered one of the most powerful women in media, her commentary, insight and expertise on areas of media and politics have graced the pages of hundreds of media outlets. She’s without question one of the most powerful women figures in business at the moment. What we admire about Arianna is her steady, steadfast focus and ability to balance both running a business and being a political and media pundit, which she manages with the same cool, casual confidence and style. She’s definitely one to watch!

To see the complete first 10 of our 20 Women Founders to Watch list, visit here. We’ll unveil the second 10 on our Huff Post column next week, and continue to cover the companies along with other news and industry moves here.

Women 2.0 Start-Up Weekend Launches 19 New Women Owned Companies

Sat, 19 Sep 2009 09:27:35 -0400

Women 2.0, an organization that’s dedicated to increasing the number of women entrepreneurs and providing support to help enable women to create high growth companies, held its annual Start-up Weekend at the end of August. Just this week, it announced that a total of 19 women-founded companies spun out of the event. You can check out the list of those created here. The two-day event kicked off with an incredible panel discussion featuring highly accomplished men and women in the internet business, followed by a pitch session where more than 40 aspiring female founders shared ideas with the crowd. Insight and useful feedback was shared with the majority staying on to continue to develop ideas into a demo by the end of the weekend — with one startup nabbing an investor on the spot. Without a doubt, these type of events are important and beneficial to women entrepreneurs everywhere. Props to Women 2.0 for another great event! — Patricia

NPG 20: Ning

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:46:51 -0400

She’s graced the cover of major magazines and has been said to be one of the most connected and respected women in the Silicon Valley, but nevermind all that. Gina Bianchini’s startup Ning has seen more than 1.5 million created with 33 million registered users since it’s launch in 2004. Playing on the explosion of users engaging the internet’s communications (aka, social) capabilities, Ning sees over 4,000 new networks created every day by everything from brands to artists to organizations of all sizes and types. But, it’s hardly the first time Bianchini has brought a great idea to fruition. The Stanford MBA grad was the co-founder and president of another company that was later acquired, and has a history of working at dynamic companies including CKS Group and Goldman Sachs. What we admire about Bianchini is that she doesn’t just have smart ideas but a talent for successfully executing and growing them. She’s been regularly recognized for her business savvy along the likes of top founders like Evan Williams of Twitter and Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook for her whipsmart business sense. Hugely inspiring in our book!

To see the complete first 10 of our 20 Women Founders to Watch list, visit here. We’ll unveil the second 10 on our Huff Post column next week, and continue to cover the companies along with other news and industry moves here.

Y Combinator Winter Funding Open

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 -0400

Seed fund Y Combinator will be accepting applications for its winter funding through October 26. As most know, seed funding is the earliest stage of funding. You can learn more about the firm’s mindset here. Y Combinator takes a different approach in that it aims to help entrepreneurs form ideas into companies, and to move those ideas to the point of additional funding (including introducing projects to later stage investors and possibly acquirers). It’s headed up by a team of very smart, accomplished people in the Silicon Valley, including the legendary Paul Graham (who if you look at his bio on the Y Combinator site you’ll see just why he’s so dynamic). One of the firm’s investments, Disqus, handles our commenting system here and we absolutely love it. Reddit was another, which went on to be acquired by Conde Nast. What’s great about Y Combinator’s approach is that it’s not just about the money an entrepreneur needs, but the guidance and connections. It funds mostly computer/tech related ideas and web services, but in today’s business environment this can be very broad and include a lot of different and interesting things. It’s also open to any age and any demographic, and doesn’t necessarily require that you have a formal business plan to enter. If you’d like to apply, be sure to read the “How To Apply” post by Graham — it’s very useful in helping entrepreneurs understand what the firm is seeking and other submission guidance. Good luck to those who submit!

NPG 20: Blogher

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 01:15:00 -0400

If there were any women-owned Web 2.0 startup that could be the poster child for what’s possible, Blogher is it. Launched in February 2005, the site has become a force in the market and one of the most successful blog networks for women. It was founded by Lisa Stone, Elisa Camahort Page, and Jory Des Jardins when the trio launched a conference for women who blog, and they haven’t looked back since. Today, Blogher is the category killer in participatory news, entertainment and information and reaches more than 15 million women every month through it’s various projects. This includes it’s incredible annual conferences, website and publishing network, which boasts an eye-popping 2,500 qualified bloggers on a range of topics for women. The company raised venture capital from Venrock, the Peacock Fund and Azure Capital Partners, and has netted many high level relationships, campaigns and efforts with dozens of organizations and brands. For advertisers, it’s a safe, stable and well run network with an enormous reach. For bloggers, it’s a place to share their work, be counted, and most of all, be part of a community that spans all ages, races, origins and demographics. What we admire about Blogher and its founders is their steady, sturdy focus and savvy business sense. That’s exactly what it takes to move an idea to a powerhouse in just four short years, and why we’ve put the founders on our 20 Women Founders to Watch list.

To see the complete first 10 of our 20 Women Founders to Watch list, visit here. We’ll unveil the second 10 on our Huff Post column next week, and continue to cover the companies along with other news and industry moves here.

Keeping Inspired

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Loved this profile in the Times Sunday with Karen Petrou who started her own consulting business in 1985. When you are having a bad entrpreneurial day (and believe me we all have them!) it is great to read articles like this to keep you inspired.

-Meghan

NPG On Huff Post This Week: 20 Women Founders To Watch

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 14:49:00 -0400

From this week’s New Power Girls series on The Huffington Post, here’s what Meghan and Patricia have to say about the first ten of the NPG 20 Women Founders To Watch:

Meghan:

When I think about women-owned companies that are making waves, innovating, creating new niches, there are a wide variety of companies that come to mind — most of which are not on the general media’s radar as business stories. So even though some of the companies we are featuring may have had plenty of press on their products, they might not have had any media attention on how what they’re doing is really unique, how they took a need in the market and media it into a business, or all the hard work and strategic moves they made to get their business where it is. As well, we think a lot of women owned business who are doing really interesting things may not register on the regular radar because their revenues don’t reach a million a year. I think that these are some of the real businesses to watch because even though they may not be large marketwise, they are capturing big shares of their mindspace, their audience’s imagination, innovating, and delving deep into niches that might be underserved. Let us know what you think or if there’s a business you think we should have on our radar.

Patricia:

I am just so inspired by these women. Several are women that I know and really admire, and all are great entrepreneurs. Blogher has raised VC capital, Paige Adams Gellar is an example of an amazing women-owned fashion brand, and it’s impossible not to be completely moved by Sprinkles founder Candace Nelson’s incredible success and focus. These are movers and shakers in the market — it’s refreshing and so important to see not just in the present but also the future. There’s room for all types of people in our country, but it’s especially exciting to see cool, classy women doing big things in business. Not only are these women smart but stylish – attend any event these days and you’ll see them. It’s like a mix of every generation of women over the past twenty years pulled into one dynamic era. It’s just so cool. So much of our media is solely focused on “train wrecks” and women who gaming the media to create a faux image of celebrity and success without necessarily having any substance to it. I think there’s room for everybody but am glad to see other variations of what women are and can be at long last, too.