Why Buy Women Built?

Did you know that Shed One Distillery is 50% owned by a woman? Zoe founded Shed One Distillery with husband, Andy, back in 2016. And what does she do within the business?
Partner, Distiller, Spirits Creator, Marmalade Maker, Events Coordinator, Label Designer, Social Media Poster, Botanical-Afternoon Tea Baker...

Zoe & Andy, "We're proud of what we've built, and we couldn't have done it without each other."

"Behind every great brand is a great founder.

Great founders are trail blazers — people who create something new; people driven by more than just a desire to get rich; people who leave the world better off than they found it. A few British names spring to mind: Richard Branson, James Dyson, Peter Jones.

But how many great founders can you name are women? Polls provide a staggering answer. 81% of 11-18-year olds are unable to name one single female entrepreneur. We have a plan to change that. We, Buy Women Built, will showcase amazing brands built by women not only to profile great female founders but also to harness the power of consumer spending, in turn creating a fairer, stronger society.

Why Women-built? Can’t the brands sell on their own merit?

Of course they can. Because most female entrepreneurs start businesses to solve their own problems, they reimagine what’s possible and end up creating some of the most forward-thinking, disruptive, and exciting products on the market.

But there is another reason to Buy Women Built. There are 30% fewer female entrepreneurs in the UK compared to the US, and only 3% of funded British businesses are female founded. If women started businesses at the same rate as in other developed countries that would add an extra £200 billion to our economy.  By shopping more women built brands, we can together unleash the powerful contribution these businesses can make to our economy, our future, and our communities.

If you can see it, you can be it.

Our story started with a tweet: “Not everyone can invest in female founders. Not everyone can mentor female founders, but we can all buy from them.” It was so simple and powerful that it got us thinking: how can we mobilise the enormous power of consumers to support Britain’s amazing women entrepreneurs?

Buy Women Built isn’t just about shining a light on the entrepreneurs of today. It’s also about inspiring the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. You can’t be what you can’t see. Making women built brands more visible not only lifts up existing entrepreneurs but also allows the next generation of girls to dream bigger. And the bigger girls dream, the stronger and fairer our economy will be."

*Words from the Buy Women Built "About Us" page. Images from Shed One Distillery.