Many have noticed a rush of new and thriving businesses in Downtown Charlotte. Those who have looked a little closer have noticed that many of these small businesses are owned and operated by women. Even closer examination will reveal that several of these women have something in common: they belong to a new women’s business networking group called “
Women Connect.”
It all started when Connie Sweet of
Connection Graphics in Potterville started traveling to Lansing to attend networking events. After awhile she noticed she wasn’t alone.
“I was attending these events and meeting people from Eaton County,” she says. “All of these women were traveling to these Lansing events and I wondered why one wasn't started closer to their home.”
After having co-founded the women’s networking group in Grand Rapids, WISE, Women in Successful Enterprises, she knew just what kind of organization was needed: a “no-guilt, no-rules” approach to networking that fit women’s schedules.
“So many networking events are at seven am or after six,” says Sweet. “Many women are taking care of kids at these times. Meeting at lunch works around that schedule and still allows them to be productive with career and family.”
And so Women-Connect was born in early 2011. The women meet every second Tuesday at Fay's Evelyn Bay in Downtown Charlotte. Already, Sweet is getting inquiries about starting groups in other communities. She hopes to build an online directory for women in groups across t region as the group grows.
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