The Beacon: Global Entrepreneurship Network
The BEACON is a community-led campaign to make Washington the most influential and supportive city for women entrepreneurs in the United States.
BECOMING BEACON
Our goal is to make Washington, a model city to demonstrate how investors, companies, mentors, and government can work together to ensure women entrepreneurs have an equal opportunity to succeed. Are you an ecosystem builder? Apply for the BEACON Grant Program!
WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES
- KICHEKO GOODS means “smile/laughter” in Swahili, Kicheko Goods is a socially conscious company that designs distinctive pieces which invest in education. Founded in 2014, Kicheko is an emerging brand made in Washington. Concepts for the brand’s small batch collections are inspired by geometry, nature, and travel. Kicheko’s aesthetic shares an unrefined boldness, sophisticated earthiness, and playful simplicity.
- GREENEASE is a mobile app that connects consumers with restaurants, cafes, and grocers that buy from local and/or sustainable farms.
- EMPOWOMANT is a for-profit social impact organization, empowering women to live with intention. We explore 3 core areas: self, family, and career applying our 3 step method of vision, work, and follow through to support women seeking personal and professional alignment. Through collaboration, we work to empower women around the world.
- JUST ROCK ENTERPRISES offers music, dance, and instruction via private, group, and workshop experiences throughout the DMV.
RESOURCES
Find the support for your women-owned business:
- Halcyon is a creativity incubator for both social entrepreneurs and socially-conscious artists. Halcyon Incubator, our flagship program, is a competitive, 13-month fellowship program, which includes a 5-month residency, to support the most promising early-stage social entrepreneurs in the world. Incubator accepts 2 cohorts of 8 social enterprises each year and has worked on more than 60 ventures.
- YAP Network is the premier convener of events and opportunities for young African diaspora professionals ages 21-40. We provide timely and relevant resources, we facilitate innovative professional development experiences, we foster inspirational networking, and we encourage impactful community building.
- Estapplish – we help startups and small businesses solve their marketing problems with custom apps. A custom-designed app can help your business ACQUIRE more customers, RETAIN existing customers, BUILD deeper relationships with customers, and keep customers ENGAGED. These customers will SHARE their experience leading to more customers via word-of-mouth marketing.
- Workout Around My Day is a seven-step process to achieve sustainable weight loss and overall fulfillment.