20 Acquisition International - Influential Businesswoman Awards 2023 Apr23583 Most Empowering Young Businesswoman Support CEO 2023 (Kenya): Caroline Mutiso Trying to establish and grow a business as a woman isn’t an easy feat. Especially when living in Kenya, where a variety of outside pressures prevent women from truly flourishing, evolving a business starts to seem like an impossibility. However, as a result of her increasing realisation of the struggles that female business owners within Kenya face, Caroline Mutiso set out to create a solution in Her Hustle, and we explore how this choice has forever changed the lives of businesswomen throughout Kenya. When Her Hustle was founded in 2018, Caroline was only 19 years old, struggling to make a new business work within a third world country. Instead of giving up, however, she persevered beyond anything she’d previously expected of herself – she took it upon herself to set up her business alone, without additional support, and encountered a multitude of hardships in the process. It would’ve been so easy for her to stop chasing her dream, and yet, Caroline recognised something that was simply irrefutable – there were certainly other young women experiencing the same hardships as her. Young women entrepreneurs make up the majority of smallscale entrepreneurs within Kenya, but the severe lack of support for these young women makes developing a business a staggering task that’s only suited to the strongest, and wealthiest, of us. In response to this undeniable truth, Caroline set her sights on ensuring the success of Her Hustle, and put her all into creating something truly special. Now renowned across Kenya, Her Hustle provides an avenue for young woman to journey down in order to grow their businesses. Regardless of their situations, businesswomen from all walks of life are given free access to mentoring programs that act as a fantastic alternative to often pricey and unaffordable classes. Whether women are looking to start a self-sustaining digital business, or are wanting to expand their reach to a wider audience, Her Hustle serves as a catalyst for change within its partners’ lives. Its overarching mission is simple – to empower young women entrepreneurs, aged between 18 and 30, with the skills and tools to successfully run their online business. Despite Her Hustle’s clear and concise aim, Caroline injects so much personal passion into everything she does, and the result is simply spectacular. As the CEO and founder of Her Hustle, Caroline oversees strategic planning and execution, whilst remaining responsible for the day to day running of its programs. In addition, she manages partnerships with a multitude of stakeholders, from development partners to government bodies, and does so with a flair that’s inspiring to witness. Her love for her business is evident through the immense amount of hard work and dedication that she applies to every program. Her Hustle exists to provide young women with the tools to truly get their businesses off of the ground, without having to spend every penny in their pocket in order to do so. Caroline experienced first hand how it felt to be cheated out of her savings, and therefore ensures that each program she offers is completely free of charge. Nobody should be held back from pursuing their dreams simply because they don’t have the funds to learn how to excel, and Caroline is at the forefront of amplifying this message. Women deserve to have the chance to thrive, despite the circumstances they may be facing. Whether they’re placed under strict gender expectations, or are limited by their home lives, they should still be given equal footing in the business sphere. Her Hustle exists as a means to present young women with all of these opportunities in a world where the demographic has gone overlooked for years. It acts as a bridge between access to business coaches who can offer support, and women who may be struggling, which all serves to grant women with multiplied revenue, and guaranteed recurring revenue. Caroline believes in the strength of women, and this manifests through each and every one of her programs. However, when it comes to business enhancement, no program does the job quite like the 10X Program. By addressing challenges, such as a lack of management skills, societal biases and prejudice, and work-life balances, the 10X Program offers an insight into how to flourish as a young businesswoman. This, in turn, equips young female entrepreneurs with the tools to grow their income and watch their business thrive. When we spoke with Caroline about her goals and future aspirations for Her Hustle, she had this to say: “I’ve always dreamed of using my experience and voice to help support gender lens focused forums bring solutions and change to challenges facing women entrepreneurs. I want to be part of this impact space that creates an environment for female entrepreneurs to excel and use their stories to inspire more women across the world…”. Her drive is beyond admirable, and it’s clear that she’ll stop at nothing to guarantee the success of her fellow businesswomen. Throughout the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a large influx in online businesses struggling to get their foot in the door, with most of these businesses being cultivated by young women with big aspirations. However, it’s become increasingly apparent since our emergence from the pandemic that women within Kenya are wanting to branch out, but haven’t been given sufficient means to do so. Her
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