Women business owners share stories of success

Debbie Chidester remembers riding in the back of the family wagon when she was 12 years old, talking to a friend about what they wanted to be when they grew up.

"I said, 'I don't know what I want to be, but I think I will have to be the boss,'" Chidester told a group of women business owners and KeyBank clients Wednesday during the bank's Key4Women conference at the Little America Hotel.

Today, Chidester co-owns Plentiful Pantry, a Salt Lake-based specialty foods manufacturer. The company was started in 1992 by Chidester and her husband, Jody Chidester, and now employs a core staff of 25.

Chidester was one of a handful of panelists at KeyBank's con- ference, which also celebrated the launch of the bank's new Resource Guide for Women Seeking Capital. The 50-page guide was developed by the Center for Women's Business Research, based in Washington, D.C., to help women grow their companies. It includes practical tips for obtaining capital and planning for growth, as well as common traits of successful business owners and input from real-world entrepreneurs.

Before it is released nationally, the guide will be introduced into a few test areas, including the Salt Lake market.

Sharon Hadary, executive director of the Center for Women's Business Research, headlined the KeyBank event and provided some of the numbers behind the resource guide.

"Women-owned businesses in the United States are growing at twice the rate of all businesses," Hadary said. "And as we look around the world, about one-third to one-quarter of businesses are women-owned. In the studies that have been done of the growth of economies around the world, the only consistent factor in every one of them is the fact of thriving women's entrepreneurship movements. So we are not only making the difference in the United States, we are making the difference around the world."

Last year in Utah, there were about 83,448 privately held businesses where women owned 50 percent or more of the company, according to the CWBR. Those businesses generated more than $15 billion in sales and accounted for more than 37 percent of all privately held businesses in the state.

Among the thriving business, Hadary said there are common traits. Successful women business owners plan for growth and set ambitious goals. They take risks while educating themselves about solid financial management practices. Successful women entrepreneurs consult skilled financial advisers and establish solid relationships with them and other business advisers. And successful women don't give up.