Buy Women Built: The power of women-built brands and why visibility matters

When we think of iconic entrepreneurs, certain names often rise to the top. But ask the average person to name a female entrepreneur, and most draw a blank. 

This reflects a wider issue. Despite remarkable progress, female founders remain underrepresented and undervalued in the UK’s business ecosystem. A movement called Buy Women Built is aiming to change that.

At The Gender Index, our goal is to make female-led companies across the UK more visible through our data. This is why Buy Women Built resonates so deeply with our mission. By advocating for women-led brands and helping consumers discover the people behind the products, it’s shifting mindsets and opening doors. Together, we’re working towards a business landscape where women founders are not the exception but simply part of the picture.

Closing the visibility gap

According to The Gender Index 2025, only 19.1% of active UK companies are led by women. Despite significant progress in turnover growth, visibility and funding remain critical barriers.

Buy Women Built is working to shift that reality by changing how we shop. The movement believes that if we want to see more successful women-led companies, we need to make them more visible, more supported, and more celebrated.

Their approach is to help consumers find and choose products from women-led businesses. Because visibility leads to growth. And growth builds influence.

Why women-led businesses matter

Many women start businesses not simply to scale quickly or maximise returns, but to solve real problems they’ve experienced, whether in beauty or fashion. This creates products and services that are forward-thinking, and aligned with customer needs.

What’s more, female entrepreneurs tend to embed social value into their businesses from the outset. Female-led businesses often endorse values like sustainability, inclusivity, and community from day one. At The Gender Index, we see how these businesses bring something more to the economy, by shaping a business culture that prioritises long-term impact as much as short-term gain.

And yet, despite their value, too many of these businesses remain underrepresented and undervalued. That’s why our work focuses on making them visible, not just in data, but in the wider narrative of what business success looks like, and who gets to define it.

And when these businesses grow, the economic impact is enormous. According to the Alison Rose Review of Entrepreneurship Report (2019) and the Women-Led High-Growth Enterprise Taskforce Report (2023), the UK could unlock £250 billion in economic value if women started and scaled businesses at the same rate as men.

Inspiring new generations

Buy Women Built was born from a single, powerful idea: not everyone can fund or mentor a startup, but every consumer makes purchasing decisions. Those decisions that are made thousands of times a day, shape the trajectory of brands, and by extension, the economy.

By giving greater prominence to women-led companies, BWB is not only boosting the performance of today’s entrepreneurs, but also shifting cultural norms. Because when young women see business leaders like them, they’re more likely to imagine themselves in those roles too.

A shared mission for inclusive growth

At The Gender Index, we use data to highlight where female founders are thriving and where barriers remain. Our 2025 report shows that turnover growth for female-led companies rose to 24.6% in 2024, now surpassing that of male-led companies. However, women are still underrepresented in fast-growth and venture-backed companies, and the funding gap remains a critical challenge.

That’s why movements like Buy Women Built are essential. By changing how consumers engage with the brands they support, they’re helping build an ecosystem where more female founders can thrive.

Backing progress, one brand at a time

Supporting women-built businesses isn’t simply a matter of preference, it’s a statement of what we value and the kind of economy we want to build. It’s about recognising that talent is everywhere, but opportunity isn’t. At The Gender Index, we see the data every day, female-led companies are growing, innovating, and contributing meaningfully to the UK economy. Yet systemic barriers in funding, visibility and scale persist.

These businesses are not just solving problems, they’re creating jobs, uplifting communities, and driving growth in sectors from food to tech. But without the right support, many will struggle to reach their full potential. That’s where everyday choices come in.

Every purchase sends a signal. By supporting brands built by women, consumers can help reshape the business landscape, making it more inclusive, more innovative, and more reflective of the society it serves.

It’s about building an economy that reflects the diversity and potential of the people within it. Progress doesn’t happen on its own. It happens when we choose it.

Discover female founded brands at:* https://buywomenbuilt.com/ *

To explore the data about female-led companies read The Gender Index 2025 Report: *https://www.thegenderindex.co.uk/uploads/Reports/TGI-2025-report.pdf *