QCity Metro is hosting our first ever Women Thrive Conference in Charlotte on Saturday October 7th, 2023.
The Women Thrive Conference invites women in entrepreneurship to spend the day learning how to take their business to the next level. Attendees will fall in one of two categories, helping them decide which sessions to attend throughout the day.
The conference sessions will be lead by experts in topics ranging from business financing, to securing grants, to web design and more. All designed to give attendees actionable insights on starting or growing their business.
The conference will be taking place at First Baptist Church West, 1801 Oaklawn Avenue Charlotte, NC 28216 from 8am to 5pm. Tickets are $25 off for the first 50 people to register — making it $75.
Join the Facebook group now to keep up with conference news and network! Find the conference agenda below.
Thank you to our sponsor:
Wells Fargo donated roughly $420 million through the Open for Business Fund, which has provided more than 200 Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and other nonprofits with resources to help diverse small business owners thrive. Small businesses are the backbone of our communities – and Wells Fargo is committed to making meaningful investments to help them succeed, including a $20 million grant to Foundation For The Carolinas to establish the Beyond Open grant program.
Agenda
8:00am – Breakfast
8:30am – Opening remarks and welcome from QCity Metro
8:35am – Round table discussion with 4 successful Black female business owners in Charlotte
Hear as Lindsey Williams, owner of Davidson Wine Co, Michelle Connley-Gore, owner of MDC Marketing Group, Christine Edwards MPA, founder of Civility Localized, and Shawaunna Middleton, owner of Eunette Hair Essentials, discuss their entrepreneurship journey with QCity Metro’s editor, Madeline Holly. Plus time for Q&A.
9:40am – Starters: 5 things you need to know to launch a business
Hear from entrepreneurship coach, Donna Maria and Alicia Stingley on not just the basics of launching a business, but also how to ensure you will see success and happiness while on your journey.
9:40am – Scalers: 3 things you need to scale your business
Hear from UNC Charlotte’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, on strategic approaches to effectively scale your business.
This session is powered by:
At UNC Charlotte’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, we help students, faculty and community partners uncover ideas and discover innovation. We have a variety of programming to help you advance at any level of your journey. Our Entrepreneurial Thinking, Customer Discovery & Design Thinking process guides you toward market success.
10:50am – Securing grants and loans
Hear from Tamika Stafford, minority business expert at U.S. Bank about when the time is right to ask for funding, what to consider when you’re asking, who you should be asking, and what to do if you’re business isn’t ready to receive funding.
U.S. Bank Access Business is a focused initiative under U.S. Bank Access Commitment™, which provides information, connections and resources to help Black small business owners sustain and grow their business. Our team of Business Access Advisors is here to help you connect and network with local resources, advise you on how to meet your goals and guide you through the process. U.S. Bank is committed to Black-owned businesses.
12:00pm – Lunch
1:00pm
Starters: how to find your target audience and start marketing
Hear from Brittney Bogues on how to use social media, texting, newsletters and more to spread the word about your business. Learn how to expand and use your network to help grow your business.
Scalers: Leadership & delegating
Delegation is something many business owners struggle with. Learn from Pamela Lue-Hing, life coach & coaching consultant, on best practices for hiring, delegating work to employees & vendors, and how to become a strong leader.
2:10pm – Branding: a never ending process
Whether your business is established or still just an idea, you’re never done branding it to your customers, funders and supporters. PR expert, Nepherterra Best will lead this session.
3:20pm – How to make better business decisions using analytics
Using website analytics to better understand your consumers is a must. Enovia Bedford, from Grow With Google, will help you make sense of your analytics, and turn them into insights.
4:00pm – Using social media to boost sales and grow your audience
Leveraging social media is a must for any type of business. Candice Nicole of Candice Nicole PR will lead this session to give you tips and tricks for building a customer base on social media.
5:00pm – Cocktail hour!
Head over to the bar to mingle with all the thriving women in entrepreneurship you’ve met throughout the day, and enjoy drink discounts.