Sometimes numbers don’t tell the whole story. There is also what we see, hear and feel on the ground: an incubator where only two women are pitching, a meeting where a founder still has to prove her legitimacy, a café where entrepreneurs talk about financing as much as how they are viewed. In France, entrepreneurship is progressing, but gender equality is following a slower pace.
1/ A landscape that is changing, but not fast enough
Let’s start with the facts. According to INSEE, 43% of new businesses are created by women, a figure that has been rising steadily for ten years. On paper, the gap is narrowing.
But as soon as we move away from simple business creation, inequalities reappear:
- Only 30% of employing companies are run by women.
- In innovative start-ups, the proportion drops: less than 1 in 5 female founders.
- And in fundraising, the imbalance is spectacular: 88% of capital raised in France goes to teams founded exclusively by men (Sista / BCG study, 2023).
Women are entrepreneurs, yes. But accessing the same means as their male counterparts remains another story.
2/ The gap that plays out from the first meeting
There is this detail that many women entrepreneurs tell, sometimes with humor, sometimes with weariness: during meetings with investors or banks, the questions do not always relate to the same thing.
Men are often asked: “How are you going to grow your business?” »
Women are sometimes still asked: “Are you sure you have time?” » or “Is your project secure? »
These are not impressions. A study conducted by the European Investment Bank showed that women are asked more risk-oriented questions, while men receive potential-oriented questions. The result? A direct impact on confidence… and on the financing obtained.
3/ The invisible load that complicates the road
Behind the numbers, there is reality. Most women entrepreneurs juggle several lives at the same time: life as a business manager, personal, family, social life… and this famous mental load that studies still show is very unevenly distributed.
According to the Balance of Time Observatory, women spend on average 1.5 hours more per day on domestic and family tasks than men.
In daily entrepreneurial life, this is felt:
- make it more difficult to stall,
- longer days,
- non-existent breaks,
- shorter nights.
But despite this, they are moving forward. They organize themselves differently, reinvent their relationship with time, surround themselves, delegate, or learn to say no: simple gestures which become tools of survival.
4/ Equality does not advance alone: it is built
Fortunately, France is no longer immobile on the issue. Several public and private initiatives seek to reduce the gaps:
The “Sista x Bpifrance” fund
Created to increase the visibility and funding of start-ups founded by women.
The government’s “Women’s Entrepreneurship” plan
Which aims to support female business creators with training and support programs.
Dedicated networks
Like FCE, Les Premières, Sista, Willa, Bouge Ta Boîte… which train, mentor, connect, open doors. And it works: entrepreneurs supported by a network or an incubator are twice as likely to obtain financing, according to a study by the Women’s Entrepreneurship Observatory.
5/ Trajectories that tell another face of the economy
Behind every female entrepreneur, there is a story of quiet courage.
- The one who left a comfortable permanent contract to open a craft workshop.
- The one who developed a tech start-up despite an ecosystem that was still very male-dominated.
- The one who started her business while raising two children, building her project during naps or late at night.
- The one who suffered a bank refusal, then a second, then a third… before finally obtaining support thanks to a network of women.
What do they have in common?
- They are moving forward.
- They speak.
- They impose themselves without apologizing.
6/ Equality is not yet achieved but it is on the way
Female entrepreneurship in France is progressing, but equality remains a horizon rather than a reality. The figures are improving, mentalities are changing, networks are multiplying.
And above all: women no longer ask permission to exist economically.
They take their place, even when it was not planned for them.
Gender equality in entrepreneurship is built, step by step, through audacity, solidarity and determination.
And although the road is still long, one thing is certain: the future of French entrepreneurship will be with them, not in their place.
