“The Wall Street”

Sizes: Women 6 US to Women 11.5 US

Most of the top banks are run by men, which prevents women from having strong positions of power to control the flow of capital. Less than 10% of all U.S. fund managers are women. We are only 9% of leadership in private equity and only 18% of total employees. Even at hedge funds and private debt firms, we only hold 11% of leadership roles. If the vast majority of private equity funds are controlled by men, where does that leave women-owned businesses in receiving capital? How are we being given access to funds with billions of dollars in pension money? How are we benefiting from this capital that we fuel as consumers and investors? 100K Incubator joins women in finance from around the world in solidarity to see an increase in leadership and stronger investment in our businesses. We dedicate this sneaker to spreading awareness and funding more women-owned businesses. $100 of each sneaker sale will go toward funding women entrepreneurs and providing subsidized coaching services to those in need.

We honor Lilla St. John as the first African-American woman to pass the NYSE exam in 1953 to become a certified investment counselor at age 25. We honor June Middleton who was the only African-American woman stockbroker working for a NYSE firm in 1964. We honor Muriel Siebert as the first woman to ever hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange and head one of its member firms, being the only woman of 1,365 men in 1967. And we honor Suzanne Shank, and her current trailblazing path being the largest shareholder in the first minority and woman-owned investment bank to rank in the top 10 municipal bond writers managing over $700 billion in deals. We’ve made strides and still have so far to go. 

Source: CNBC, 2018; Ally, 2020; Wikipedia, 2020

“The 640 NWS”

Black women are starting businesses faster than any other demographic in the United States, but remain the least funded accessing just .0006% of venture capital dollars. And according to the U.S. federal reserve, they are less likely than their non-minority peers to receive some or all of the credit-based financing they’ve requested from banks and private financial institutions. 100K Incubator is proud to be the first business funding mobile app for women, having deliberately placed a strong emphasis on outreaching, engaging, and getting Black women funded. We dedicate this sneaker to Black women entrepreneurs, and funding more of their businesses through cash grants and ongoing partnerships. $100 of each sneaker sale will go toward funding women entrepreneurs and providing subsidized coaching services to those in need.

We honor Madam CJ Walker as the first self made woman millionaire in the United States, and the Madam CJ Walker Manufacturing Company that was located at 640 North West Street in Indianapolis, Indiana. The first self made woman millionaire in the United States was a Black woman, who not only created wealth for herself, but created space for other women to build their own businesses under her company and increase the economic power of their families. Many Black women have followed in her footsteps and continue to use her story as motivation to push through the funding and scaling odds stacked against them. We honor her and every Black woman building tables not only for themselves, but that in their resilience, serve as an example for us all.

Source: Historic Indianapolis, 2019

“The 47 Serrano” 

Sizes: Women 6 US to Women 14 US 

Women represent 40% of all self-employed immigrants in the United States according to the Kauffman Index. The number of self-employed women immigrants jumped from just 180,000 in 1980 to 1.3 million entrepreneurs in 2014, according to a George Mason study, and nearly 13% of all women owned firms are controlled by women who are born outside of the United States. While the growth is exciting, immigrant women not only encounter the same issues U.S. born women encounter, but they also tend to experience deeper lack of capital due to limited credit history and friends / family networks for investment. Additionally, there can be language barriers to understanding the U.S. financial system, which is already challenging enough for most new entrepreneurs. We dedicate this sneaker to immigrant women entrepreneurs, and funding more of their businesses through cash grants and ongoing partnerships. $100 of each sneaker sale will go toward funding women entrepreneurs and providing subsidized coaching services to those in need.

We honor Celia Cruz as a remarkable woman entrepreneur who broke ground in the U.S. entertainment industry after emigrating from Cuba. Her first home in Cuba was located at 47 Serrano St in Havana where she began singing as a child. Many years later, not only did Celia become a symbol of success for Black and Latinx women amid racial tensions in the 1960s, but she inspired women around the world to create their own opportunities and careers. We honor her and the millions of other women forging their own paths in new countries. 

Source: National Women’s Business Council, 2020