Westchester is doing its part to elevate women-owned businesses on Women’s Equality Day by shedding light on Westchester’s Launch1000 program.
Women in New York earn an average of just 86 cents for every dollar men earn, but progress is being made every day to eliminate that.
Women account for about 20% of all offices nationwide. salary Opportunities still lag men, according to the Small Business Administration.
Mount Vernon native Marion Henson carries the torch as a black and female owned business owner.
Henson is a graduate of Westchester Economic Development’s Launch1000 program.
Her pop-up grocery business, Bloom Healthy, makes healthy food more affordable and accessible.
It opened last July and has been a success ever since.
Anyone can apply to Launch1000 regardless of gender, but the program will move the county toward a more gender-equal local economy.
Currently, 400 people are participating in the program.this We offer free business training and mentorship to help residents set up their own businesses. At least half of them are women, according to County Economic Development Commissioner Bridget Gibbons.
“Some business owners have an advantage that others don’t have,” Gibbons said. It reflects