One in four female entrepreneurs are juggling a second job to stay afloat, new research reveals.
Two in five women founders say running a business in 2025 has been tougher than last year, according to the study by everywoman and Tide, with over half working longer hours.
The report shows a challenging year for women-led enterprises, with the most common setbacks being falling consumer spending, inflation, and political uncertainty.
Access to finance remains a major hurdle, with 28% citing limited access to funding as a barrier to growth and 36% calling for more grants and targeted tax relief to help them scale.
Only 2p in every £1 invested in venture capital funding in the UK goes to female-founded businesses, and it is estimated that supporting women to have the same access to investment that their male peers enjoy would deliver an economic boost of over £250 billion.
But despite these setbacks, the study said female entrepreneurs are “displaying remarkable resilience in the face of economic headwinds”. More than three fifths expect their revenue to grow over the next year, with 17% predicting a 50-100% increase.
In addition, 44% plan to enter new markets and 30% will invest in digitisation, both outpacing male business owners’ forecasts (33% and 23%, respectively).
Meanwhile, over a quarter of women business owners plan to expand their teams in the next year (28%) and a fifth (21%) will invest in upskilling and training.
Nicole Goodwin, joint managing director of AllBright everywoman, said: “Tough times reveal true grit, and female founders have it in abundance. Their ambition and optimism in the face of hardship isn’t naive, it’s strategic. Women-led businesses are proving themselves as an unstoppable force for growth and innovation across the UK.”
Tide and everywoman are collaborating on a programme to help female entrepreneurs succeed, including giving a £20,000 grant to one female founder at an awards ceremony in December.
The survey, released during Global Entrepreneurship Week, follows a major report released by the Women’s and Equalities Committee last month.
It said access to finance for female-founders is a “crucial issue” given the “tiny fraction” of venture capital investment that does going to supporting women-led businesses. Despite numerous reviews and initiatives “this situation is getting worse not better”, it warned.
The report outlined 26 actions the government should take to support female entrepreneurs.