Economy - published on 08 March 2024
Source: press office Unioncamere
Rome, March 7, 2024 – There are 1.325 million women-owned businesses registered in Italy, 22.2% of the total national production fabric. The year 2023 marks a halt in the growth of women-led businesses, but it does not interrupt the “invasion” of the female universe into traditionally “male” sectors, especially those with higher knowledge content. And while remaining marked by small size, lower productivity and greater fragility reflected in lower “life expectancy,” the female-led business world is making strides on the front of strengthening the entrepreneurial structure. It also remains an important landing place for many young people and is particularly prevalent in the South, thus offering many women a concrete opportunity for commitment and professional growth.
These are some of the elements that emerge from a reading of data from Unioncamere‘s Observatory for Women’s Entrepreneurship, produced with the support of SiCamera and Centro studi Tagliacarne.
The data will be presented tomorrow in Lecce and Pisa, in the stages of the Giro d’Italia delle donne che fanno impresa, the roadshow promoted by Unioncamere with the direct involvement of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Committees of the Chambers of Commerce. The Giro d’Italia, which tomorrow touches two stages in 2024 (after those in Padua and Terni), is now included in the “National Plan for Women’s Entrepreneurship,” a project of the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy and financed by the European Union with Next Generation EU resources that Invitalia – the managing entity – is implementing in collaboration with Unioncamere.
“Women’s enterprises are an important and consolidated reality of the Italian production system” stresses Unioncamere President Andrea Prete – “A universe that has what it takes to continue growing and strengthening, also thanks to the resources put in place by Mimit.”
In 2023, businesses led by women decreased by 11 thousand (-0.9%), with a substantial drop especially in the agricultural sector (-6 thousand businesses), manufacturing (-2 thousand) and trade (-8,700).
On the other hand, there are more than 2 thousand more women-owned businesses in Professional, scientific and technical activities, a male-dominated sector in which women are, however, gradually expanding their involvement. The feminization rate of these firms (given by the ratio of women-owned businesses to total businesses) in 2023 is close to 20% from 19.7 percent in 2022.
The engagement of women in companies involved in Real Estate Activities (+1,200), Rental, Travel Agencies and Business Support Services (+1,000), and Financial and Insurance Activities (+550) is also growing significantly.
Women’s businesses also continue to grow in areas where their participation is already fairly well established: Education, Health Care and Arts, Sports and Entertainment (almost 700 more units overall), and in Other Service Activities, including Personal Care Services (almost 2 thousand more).
The picture taken by Unioncamere shows that the female enterprise universe has specific characteristics. Meanwhile, it is somewhat younger than other businesses: 10.6 percent of women’s businesses are led by female entrepreneurs under 35 (compared with 7.9% of non-female businesses). Widely spread in the South (about 500,000 businesses led by women in southern regions, nearly 37% of the total), it is also marked by small businesses (96.3% are concentrated in the 0-9 employees class, while non-female businesses of this size are 94.1%); has a 60% lower productivity than non-female businesses; has a lower survival rate (at three years after birth, 18% of women-led businesses are closed, compared with 14.7% of other businesses; at five years, the probability of survival for a women-led business is 72.1% compared with 77% for non-female businesses).
Something in the world of women entrepreneurs, however, is changing. In fact, the propensity of women entrepreneurs to use more structured business models is growing (women-owned corporations increased by 1.7% in 2023 to account for 26% of the total number of companies led by women).
