How These Female Founders Got Started Working on Their Impact Ventures
Behind every mission-driven business is a powerful story—a moment, experience, or calling that sparked something deeper. For these inspiring women, that spark led to action.
Here, female founders from the Dreamers & Doers community share the experiences that inspired their impact ventures—and the small (but meaningful) steps that helped them get started. From personal turning points to big-picture realizations, their stories prove that making a difference doesn’t always start with a grand plan—it begins with a spark and the courage to follow it.
Let their journeys remind you that your idea matters and that there’s always room to do more good in the world.
Catharine Montgomery
Founder & CEO of Better Together Agency, developing and executing integrated communications campaigns that adapt to shifting landscapes, influence evolving markets, and lead to action while staying true to values.
Generative AI
I left a toxic job without a backup plan. Taking that pause gave me the space to see how communication—handled with intention and values—could move people toward action and accountability.
Giving myself permission to start without needing anyone’s approval changed everything, and helped me take the first steps forward.
Dora Rankin
CEO of Dora L. Rankin Consulting LLC, a seasoned and certified business advisor, sales strategist, and fractional CEO providing high level support for women who want to live their purpose and create wealth.
Chelsea Sanders- Blueline Productions
I was standing in a room with more than 3,000 people and realized there were only ten who looked like me. At that moment, I knew I had to support women founders to build economic power through entrepreneurship
My past experiences led to clarity, which led to action. After describing my own experiences to like-minded women, I found that the intellectual property I created was the roadmap for growth women were looking for.
Crystal Foote
Founder & Head of Partnerships at Digital Culture Group, crafting innovative, data-driven advertising solutions that deeply resonate with dynamic and evolving audiences.
Matthew Boyd
The idea for Digital Culture Group started during a strategy session with a major brand that relied on a monolithic, one-size-fits-all approach to audience targeting. They were missing high-intent segments with clear brand affinities and significant buying power simply because those consumers didn’t fit legacy models. That moment revealed a recurring industry blind spot and inspired us to build smarter tools that uncover overlooked growth.
What helped me turn the idea into action was realizing that the real problem wasn’t lack of data but lack of interpretation. I started prototyping tools that could decode the “why behind the buy,” and that early instinct became the engine behind our proprietary AI and audience intelligence today.
Sydney de Arenas
CEO & Founder of The Etho, a marketplace connecting ethical products with conscious buyers.
Kirstin Dickerson
I’ve traveled to more than 40 countries and witnessed both incredible craftsmanship and heartbreaking poverty. I felt called to connect artisans to a global market—not just to preserve their traditional crafts and culture, but also to empower women who had few income opportunities and still carried the burden of expenses that shaped their children’s futures, like education. My second trip to India was the hardest; I left vowing not to return until I had a real way to contribute to the change I wanted to see.
To get started, I spoke to other people who had marketplaces––anyone I could get an introduction to. This helped me understand what they had already learned the hard way: to start working with vendors before investing heavily in attracting customers, which helped me focus on one direction.
Khushali Shah
CEO & Owner of Canopy Families, a one-stop shop for household help with a mission to take the stress out of finding the support our clients need.
Claire Harvey
Over a period of a few months, it seemed like everywhere I looked—from friends to Facebook moms groups—people were talking about all the things they had on their plate and how hard it was to find help. I thought, Why hasn’t anyone started a company to hire and vet employees that can then be matched with families, providing employees with a stable income and benefits and families with the help they were seeking?
The support of family and friends was vital for turning my idea into action. They were encouraging, but also asked a lot of good questions, which helped refine the idea and business plan.
Kate Anderson
Co-Founder of Downsizable, a full-service senior move management company based in the Boston suburbs, dedicated to helping older adults and their families navigate the overwhelming process of downsizing and transitioning to a new home.
Kate Anderson
The idea for Downsizable came from watching my mom help seniors downsize. She showed me how powerful compassionate support can be during big life transitions. As I saw more friends juggling the emotional and logistical weight of moving their aging parents, I realized that families need more than just movers—they need guidance, empathy, and relief.
I just started by telling people about the idea. We got our first several clients by telling everyone we saw and interacted with about our business.
Mary Lemmer
Founder of Improve, equipping teams and leaders to navigate uncertainty and create what’s next by blending improvisation, neuroscience, and behavioral science into research-backed workshops that strengthen adaptability, communication, and trust, while unlocking creativity, collaboration, and new possibilities.
Ryan Lash (TED)
The spark for Improve came during a period in my entrepreneurial journey when I was overwhelmed, overextended, and unsure—until I stepped into an improv class. For the first time in a long time, I felt fully present and free to respond to the unknown. That experience showed me that improv tools weren’t just for the stage; they were powerful, practical, and deeply necessary for leadership, especially when the script disappears.
I didn’t set out to start a business. I was improvising! What began as a personal necessity turned into Improv for Entrepreneurs, a casual workshop for founders looking to improve their pitches. As I shared these tools, word spread, impact deepened, and over time, a business— one rooted in the very principles I was teaching—took shape.
Palveshey Tariq
Founder & Chief Visionary Officer of Alternative Coaching Methods, redefining health and wealth through plant medicine, helping high achievers transform into high performers.
Zack Zerbe
A therapist came to me for help getting off of SSRIs (antidepressants), and I realized then that even our healthcare providers need guidance to cultivate their health. I decided the best way to heal our society was to heal the healers (therapists and doctors) and leaders so that the impact could trickle down into their circles and beyond.
Taking the time to listen to people’s stories helped me get going. I came to learn that inside all of us is a child that yearns for safety. This became a core value of my impact venture: to provide safe containers to explore the darkness within.
Emma Tessler
Founder & CEO of Ninety Five Media, a woman owned and operated digital marketing agency specializing in creating high converting content that 3x’s our clients’ growth.
Emma Tessler
The inspiration for Ninety Five Media came in 2015, when I was working for an interior designer who asked me to start an Instagram account because she’d heard some brands were using it to land clients (unheard of at the time!). That simple request opened my eyes to the massive untapped potential of social media marketing. As I dug deeper into the platform, I realized how powerful it could be in driving real growth when used strategically.
One thing that helped me turn my idea into action in the early days was being bold. I had zero fear and didn’t overthink what I was doing. I would test new strategies, post videos when no one else was, and cold pitch founders on my services whenever I could. I got laughed at more than you would imagine, but it never deterred me. I was steadfast in my vision.
Farida Raafat
Founder & CEO of DALYA, a customized womenswear brand and creative studio redefining tailoring through a female lens—empowering women founders and leaders to show up with confidence and style.
Lily Telford
The idea for DALYA came after a decade of working in menswear design, where I saw firsthand how easy and accessible it was for men to create custom pieces—while women rarely had the same options, despite needing clothing that fits their bodies and lifestyles just as intentionally.
My background in fashion and production helped me take action early on. I understood the full process—from design to sourcing to manufacturing—which gave me the confidence to start DALYA and build a custom womenswear brand from the ground up.
Nicole Leon
Founder of L Leon Virtual Assistance LLC, a boutique virtual assistance business helping women-led businesses scale through streamlined operations, brand visibility, and executive-level virtual support.
Natalie Prisla
Seven years ago, I started my business out of survival after being repeatedly overlooked, misrepresented, and told I was “too much” as a Latina woman. I was tired of being dismissed and watching women like me get boxed in or burned out. I knew there had to be another way, and I set out to build it.
My business started with a laptop and a lot of grit. I stopped waiting for someone to give me permission. I showed up boldly—even when it was scary—and let my lived experience become the foundation for something bigger than me.
Terry Chang
CEO & Co-Founder of Two Moons Health, offering a natural, science-backed solution for women’s hormonal balance, introducing the first-ever seed cycling capsule (patent pending) to support PMS, PMDD, perimenopause, hormonal acne, and cycle irregularities.
Terry Chang
The idea for our company came from a conversation about hormonal health where my longtime friend—and now co-founder, Dr. Ulrike Kaunzner—shared her experience with seed cycling, a plant-based approach using raw seeds aligned with different phases of the cycle to manage symptoms. I loved the concept but wondered what we could do to make it more convenient for a modern woman’s lifestyle.
In our early marketing research, we were deeply supported by the enthusiastic participation of friends and family. At first, we envisioned creating a seed-based snack bar, but the feedback was clear and consistent: capsules were the overwhelmingly preferred format. That helpful insight shaped the entire direction of our product development.
Natalia Mazzaia
Founder of Terratela, a conscious clothing brand born from a desire to bridge two of the world’s most polluting industries—fashion and food—by making clothing from innovative, food-based materials.
Derrick Henry
The spark for my business happened over dinner, when the chef came out to share the story behind our meal. With remarkable detail, he spoke about every step of his supply chain, explaining how the restaurant repurposes ingredients, composts, and strives to ensure that nothing goes to waste. At that moment, it hit me: why isn’t the fashion industry doing the same? The connection felt so obvious.
I couldn’t have made it real without the incredible support of our dedicated factories. Even when we were small and just starting out, they took a chance on a dreamer and believed in our vision. It’s a true partnership, and we make it a priority to work with only ethical manufacturers who share our commitment to a sustainable fashion future.
Chen Lizra
Founder of Power of Somatic Intelligence, a wellness company with stellar results that guides high achievers to heal trauma, awaken feminine power, and lead with bold authenticity through somatic coaching, immersive retreats, and transformative online programs.
Viktoria Churilina
I suffered a big blow in life when my mom got mentally sick when I was 11 years old. What came after was three decades of looking for how to resolve what was broken. I wanted to save others the time it took me and show them exactly how to heal more quickly.
I always had amazing ideas for projects, but for years, none of them came to life. It was only when I got into business school—and negotiated with the school to work on my actual business in all my classes—that this became a reality. I got to work hands-on with teachers who had successful companies or sold them for millions and was able to graduate with a degree and a successful business.
Mathangi Swaminathan
Founder & CEO of Parity Lab, a global social enterprise ending the cycle of gender-based violence through mental wellness and leadership development.
Mathangi Swaminathan
My business started in 2019, when domestic violence was declared a “shadow pandemic” by the UN—revealing how pervasive this issue is and how those working to address gender-based violence lacked essential support and healing infrastructure despite overwhelming demand.
Rather than keeping Parity Lab as an abstract concept, I immediately formed a small working board that met monthly and conducted in-depth interviews with over 100 stakeholders across the gender-based violence ecosystem. During these sessions, we gathered critical insights about system gaps and lived experiences that informed our pilot programs and real-world testing phase, ensuring our approach was grounded in the actual needs of those we aim to serve.
Anastasia Shubareva-Epshtein
Founder & CEO of Carea, a new kind of pregnancy and postpartum tracker with a mental health first approach, designed by women for women.
Beth Lavin Photography
After going through the grueling process of IVF—and, unfortunately, also experiencing a miscarriage—I found myself finally pregnant with our miracle rainbow baby. However, apart from joy, I also felt so much anxiety and fear, which was only made worse by existing pregnancy apps. These apps leaned into a sunshine-and-rainbow portrayal of pregnancy, which did not resonate with me. This is when I had the idea to create something that supports women in a more authentic way: a place where women can feel cared for and supported, receiving information and tools to empower their unique health journey.
Doing as much research as possible on what users enjoy—and don’t—about existing pregnancy apps in the market was a critical first step. From there, I simply put pen to paper and sketched out the idea of the problem I was trying to solve.
Luzy King
CEO & Founder of Say Hola Wealth, a culturally-rooted financial education platform and community helping ambitious Latinas grow wealth with confidence, clarity, and cultura.
Photographed by Baldo
The global COVID-19 pandemic pushed countless women—especially Latinas—out of the workforce, many of whom didn’t even have a $500 emergency fund. That moment exposed the deep gaps in financial education and support for our community. It lit a fire in me to create Say Hola Wealth as a space for healing, learning, and building real financial power.
Reaching out to the right partners made all the difference in getting started. I stopped playing small and looked beyond local connections. Thinking big led me to national partners who were ready to collaborate and aligned with my mission from day one.
Kelly Hubbell
Founder & CEO of Sage Haus, helping busy parents reclaim time by building their village, recruiting house managers and family assistants to lighten the mental load and support families in implementing home systems that streamline household management and improve partner collaboration.
Colleen Amelia
Sage Haus was born from my own experience as a working mom trying to hold it all together—until I realized I didn’t have to. Hiring my first house manager was life-changing: our home ran more smoothly, my marriage improved, and I finally had time to breathe. That transformation stuck with me so deeply that I left a successful corporate career to go all in and help other families build the support systems they deserve.
In the early days, it wasn’t a fancy business plan or funding round that pushed me forward but a friend who said, “More moms need to hear this.” Her belief gave me the confidence to start sharing my story and the tools that changed my life.
Bethany Halbreich
Founder & Executive Director of Paint the World, a nonprofit reimagining the role of the arts in social change—using blank canvas installations to unlock creative agency, surface community insight, and influence decision-making in underserved communities.
Neal Urban
One day, I took a simple action—setting up a blank canvas with art supplies in my community—and witnessed so many people painting on it and commenting that it was the best moment of their week because they were doing something out of the ordinary. I realized this invitation could cause a ripple effect around the world if I kept repeating it.
Persistence and Google were what it took to make my idea a reality. In the early days, whenever I didn’t know how to do something, I taught myself: how to file for 501(c)(3) status, register a trademark, build impact reports, write process docs, etc. You should never let not knowing be a reason to stop.
Ogaga Johnson
Founder & CEO of Verisult, a career-tech and talent-matching company that helps people find fulfilling jobs, supports businesses in hiring the right talent, and creates simple tools for workforce growth.
Stephen NEJ
The idea for Verisult came when I saw countless skilled immigrants overlooked for roles simply because their experience didn’t fit a narrow definition of “work history.” I knew firsthand how many meaningful skills were being wasted and how many dreams and hopes for a better life were being dashed. I wanted to see immigrants thriving in their careers: increasing their earning power, building financial wealth, and living the life they desired for themselves and their families.
Listening to the real stories of immigrants struggling to find meaningful work despite their qualifications helped me turn the idea into action. Their experiences gave me the clarity, urgency, and motivation to start building practical solutions immediately.
Catalina Parker
Co-Founder of Relatable Nonprofit, helping nonprofit professionals build consulting careers so they can create impact with more freedom, flexibility, and joy.
Maxson Media
After years of consulting for nonprofits, my business partner and I recognized a clear market gap: nonprofit professionals wanted to become consultants, but they lacked the support to do so. We saw nonprofit consulting as a win-win; organizations get affordable, high-quality expertise without the overhead of full-time staff, and professionals gain the freedom to create impact across multiple causes.
To validate demand, we partnered with a webinar sponsor who promoted us to their list of nonprofit professionals. That initial group of buyers became our beta testers, and we built the program alongside them, using their feedback to shape the offer.
Shikshita Juyal
Co-Founder & CEO of Crework Labs LLP, a product studio that rapidly builds tech solutions, leveraging AI to turn founders’ ideas into products that sell.
Shikshita Juyal
The spark for my venture came when I realized how many brilliant founders couldn’t pursue their ideas, not because of a lack of vision, but because they lacked technical access or couldn’t afford to leave their jobs. I’d developed a skillset to build products quickly and turn ideas into real traction, and I wanted to empower others with those tools, especially women and those from non-technical or underrepresented backgrounds.
Grit and perseverance were my early secrets of success. Despite lacking financial stability and juggling a full-time job, I worked long hours to push past societal boundaries for girls like me. Believing in myself and showing up even when users didn’t come and plans failed made all the difference.
Cynthia Hellen
Founder & CEO of RYLEN, a creative studio and innovation lab focused on ethical design, education, and emerging technologies.
Cynthia Hellen
I launched RYLEN after spending years teaching design thinking in communities from the Andes to Africa to urban U.S. classrooms. I kept seeing the same pattern: a lack of ethical frameworks guiding how we use technology. That’s when I developed the QINTI Framework™ to help innovators question with intention, integrate AI with care, and design with integrity.
I hosted a small pilot to test the framework. Watching people light up with clarity after years of AI confusion confirmed I wasn’t building a product but a way of thinking.
Victoria Repa
CEO & Founder of BetterMe, a leading health and wellness platform providing a tailored holistic approach to well-being for 150 million users worldwide.
BetterMe
I grew up in a small village with very limited access to wellness resources, which led to a lack of understanding on how to lead a healthy lifestyle. Later, while working in a stable but sedentary corporate job, I began to experience symptoms of burnout: poor nutrition, stress, and physical stagnation. It was during this period that I realized how many people—regardless of geography—ask the same question: How can I take control of my health?
Our growth was made possible by relentless hard work, constant dialogue with users, and the ability to adapt quickly to a rapidly evolving market. In 2017, I launched a grassroots community on Facebook to explore user pain points. I have tested and continue to test each product myself before launch, which has allowed me to understand firsthand the problems of our users. Being close to our audience not only shaped BetterMe’s products, but also ensured that we were solving real problems in real time.
Lakshmi Balasubramanian
Co-Founder & CPO of NoomaLooma, transforming how people incorporate creative practice into their lives, weaving micro creative moments into your existing routines while connecting you with a community that celebrates these small victories.
Anna Sacco
My intentional “slowbatical”—a gap year of disconnecting from old identities to discover who I might become—helped me discover the deep joy I found in play, making me feel more alive than I had in years. This experience revealed a universal truth: most people are starving for authentic creative expression and genuine human connection, yet lack accessible pathways to both. That revelation sparked my mission to co-found a “phygital” company that makes creativity accessible, communal, and fun: where we inspire, track, share, and celebrate creative practices as pathways to well-being.
I turned my idea into action by creating impromptu park pop-ups, designing failure parties, writing letters to strangers, and running daily play activations through WhatsApp groups. All of these were deliberately low-stakes experiments that prioritized joy over perfection. The magic happened when I found creative catalysts who were more than inspired to co-design these experiences with me, proving that people were hungry for playful, authentic connection and would actively help build the world we all wanted to live in.
Linda Du
CEO of Moola Money, a UK-based fintech platform on a mission to help millennials make better financial decisions.
Alina Rudya
My entry into financial services began in microfinance at Kiva in Southern Africa, where I saw firsthand how financial empowerment could transform lives. Years later, while informally coaching friends on money matters, I realized that even highly educated millennials lacked confidence and access to personalized advice. I set out to build something that would democratize financial guidance and empower a new generation.
The rise of AI was a game-changer. On the production side, it enabled me to build with a lean, talented team on flexible contracts. On the demand side, it made users more open to trusting AI-driven financial guidance. This convergence made it the perfect time to launch.
Michelle Stevens
Founder & CEO of The Refill Shoppe, an award-winning, B Corp-certified eco-boutique redefining sustainable retail with style and substance.
Kasee Shambora
My childhood experiences growing up on a sailboat on the bayou led to a massive love for the natural world and a desire to protect it. Years later, I found myself buying a cute recycled glass bottle for olive oil, only to realize I had to buy a bottle to refill it with. That’s when it hit me: I didn’t want to keep buying new bottles. I wanted to refill my forever bottle rather than buy another one that I had to hope would get recycled.
My friends and loved ones helped me bring my idea into reality—sometimes literally, putting in flooring or painting signs, other times simply with a supportive ear or words of encouragement. Let your community come together and support you in turning your ideas into actions!
Alicia White
Founder & CEO of Blue SKYie & Project Petals, encompassing multiple ventures dedicated to driving transformative change by creating environmental and climate innovation for a more sustainable world.
Valrie Ya
I saw firsthand—through my work with my environmental nonprofit Project Petals—how under-resourced communities were hit hardest by environmental issues, from polluted air to extreme heat, yet were often excluded from climate innovation. This is the reason I created Blue SKYie, which encompasses multiple ventures dedicated to driving transformative change by creating environmental and climate innovation for a more sustainable world.
The power of partnerships and joining accelerator programs focused on women in leadership helped me build early momentum. They provided not only guidance and resources, but also a supportive network and a community that has helped put my idea into action.
Melinda Wang
Founder of Ninth Street Collective, an expert network supporting the sustainability of artists whose work enriches public life, expands cultural dialogue, and drives social change.
Melinda Wang
During my 15-year career as a curator—and especially during my tenure as Executive Director of New York Artists Equity Association—I saw firsthand the need for professional development services that are typically reserved for artists working directly with galleries, dealers, and museums. In 2016 and 2017, I organized several informal workshops about the business side of art. After that, dozens of artists came up to me asking for career guidance and individual coaching.
Listening closely to artists—and then having meaningful conversations with my network of curators, gallerists, arts administrators, and critics about artists’ needs—helped surface specific, recurring issues that weren’t being addressed elsewhere. The shared commitment to helping artists lit a fire under many of us and was the impetus to form Ninth Street Collective.
KK Hart
Chief emPOWERment Officer/CEO of Ghost Democracy, a complete collection of better-for-you, exceptionally clean(er) than clean, skincare products that democratize our minimalist, multi-tasking, measurably effective (and also vegan, cruelty-free) holistic self care for all skin types, tones, and textures!
Ghost Democracy
My journey into impact investing wasn’t a single “aha!” moment, but rather an evolution shaped by the cumulative experience of acquiring and growing ten businesses. But it was never about simply buying a business to me. It was about leveraging my capital, expertise, and network to create a broader, more positive influence. I saw firsthand how a strategic investment—whether as a minority owner in a large enterprise or through acquiring a multi-million dollar skincare business—could have ripple effects beyond the balance sheet.
With angel investing, I found a powerful avenue to apply both capital and skills, helping budding entrepreneurs navigate the treacherous early stages of their ventures. The desire to see others succeed, contribute to their growth, and foster innovation became just as compelling as my own entrepreneurial pursuits. It was clear that the most impactful ventures are those that benefit not only the investor, but also the broader community and the individuals within it.
Ariana Rodriguez
Founder & CEO of CORXLY, an adaptive project management platform built for neurodivergent brains, helping users regulate effort, reduce burnout, and stay engaged—not just productive—through emotionally intelligent design and voice-first workflows.
Jatnna Garcia Photography
I’d been in operations for over a decade, constantly dropping balls despite being good at my job. Sticky notes, lost emails, a dozen to-do lists—nothing worked. Then I got diagnosed with ADHD and everything finally clicked. When ChatGPT launched, I started experimenting with voice-to-plan workflows—and it was a revelation. CORXLY was born from that moment: a tool that actually works with my brain.
Giving myself permission to start scrappy was important for turning my idea into action. I stopped trying to make it perfect and just built a working prototype—one that reflected my voice, struggles, and the tools I wished existed. The real magic came from building with the community it was meant to serve.
All individuals featured in this article are members of Dreamers & Doers, an award-winning community amplifying extraordinary entrepreneurial women through PR opportunities, authentic connection, and trajectory-shifting resources.