Women find business niche in Williamston
Williamston – If you’re an aspiring female entrepreneur unsure about starting your own business, an afternoon in Williamston might prove inspiring.
Several downtown businesses in Williamston are owned by women. There are 97 female-owned businesses in Williamston and the surrounding area, and 48 of those are in the downtown, said Barbara Burke, executive director of the Williamston Area Chamber of Commerce.
There were 217,673 women-owned businesses in Michigan in 2005, the most recent figures available from the U.S. Small Business Administration. That’s 26 percent of the 831,823 businesses in the state.
Most of the downtown Williamston business are small, privately owned operations and do not release sales and profit figures. But some have been around for several years.
And there’s a common theme running through their individual stories. The owners all reached points in their lives when they couldn’t fight their dreams any longer. Here’s a look at three:
