Female entrepreneurs now have until midnight on 14th July 2025 to submit their entries for this extraordinary showcase of female business brilliance.

The everywoman Entrepreneur Awards were born from a mission to celebrate incredible businesswomen and open doors to funding, growth opportunities and valuable connections. It is the UK’s longest-running recognition programme for women in business, and has become a life-changing springboard for countless female entrepreneurs.

The funding gap and lack of female role models remain an enduring barrier to women starting and growing their businesses. Only 2.8p of every £1 of equity investment in the UK goes to fully female-founded businesses. Meanwhile, just 6% of high-growth enterprises are wholly or majority-led by women.

everywoman remains at the forefront of the drive to change these statistics, with its award programme providing a valuable platform for female entrepreneurs to increase their profile, build partnerships and secure successful commercial deals. 

The everywoman Entrepreneur Award winners will be announced on 2nd December at The Londoner, Leicester Square. To find out more about the awards or to nominate yourself or someone you know, visit www.everywoman.com/entrepreneur-awards

Viviane Paxinos, CEO at everywoman, comments: “The everywoman Entrepreneur Awards have built a strong community of trailblazing business leaders, and this is a fantastic opportunity for more women to join them. This annual celebration provides a powerful platform for incredible women to build connections and partnerships that drive even greater success, while creating a beacon of inspiration for the next generation of female founders.”

Maxine Benson MBE, and Karen Gill MBE, Co-Founders of everywoman, comment: “The connections made through the awards programme have led to game-changing partnerships and collaborations that act as a catalyst for future success and business growth. In an environment where women founders still face tremendous hurdles accessing venture capital, these relationships can be transformative.”

The associate sponsor for the everywoman Entrepreneur Awards is leading growth capital investor BGF, which is the UK and Ireland’s most active investor in female-powered businesses.

Andy Gregory, CEO of BGF, comments: "BGF has committed at least £300 million to female-powered businesses over the next five years, because we believe the next wave of British entrepreneurship will be more diverse, inclusive and dynamic. The everywoman Entrepreneur Awards play a critical role in spotlighting the talent and ambition of female founders across the UK. We're proud to support this platform as part of our wider mission to turn good intentions into meaningful action – starting with investment at scale."

The judging panel is composed of some of the UK’s most successful women in business, alongside VCs and investors who are actively working to close the funding gap through their diverse portfolios. Judges in 2024 included Chrissie Rucker OBE, founder of The White Company, Mandy Nyarko MBE, co-founder of The Discovery School, and Connie Nam, founder of Astrid and Miyu, among many other business leaders from a wide range of entrepreneurial backgrounds and companies. BGF, the UK and Ireland’s most active growth capital investor, is sponsoring the awards for the fourth consecutive year.

The 2025 categories are:

• The Balance Award: awarded to a woman who founded her business whilst raising a  child/children aged 12 or under
• Brand of the Future – sponsored by The White Company: awarded to the female founder that has recognised a real gap in the market and demonstrates great potential for growth. The winner will receive a mentoring session with founder Chrissie Rucker OBE, and the CEO and other Directors within the business
• Entrepreneur for Good Award – sponsored by Specsavers: awarded to a woman who has founded a business that contributes to the greater good in some way, whether this is through a social enterprise, diversity and inclusion, a focus on sustainability or any other area of impact
• International Expansion Award – sponsored by Rathbone Financial Planning: awarded to a female founder who has successfully expanded her product/service to a new geographic market
• The Next Level Award: awarded to a female founder who has a highly profitable business (above £1,000,000 EBITDA)
• Scale Up Award – sponsored by BGF: celebrates a woman who has founded a company in a period of high growth
• Social Star Award: awarded to a woman who has significantly grown or launched her business using predominantly the power of social media
• Solopreneur Award: awarded to a woman running a business as an independent sole trader
• Small Enterprise Award: this award celebrates an inspiring woman who has founded a profitable business with less than 25 employees
• Tech Innovator Award: this award recognises a woman who is creating innovative tech which is creating change within industry

For more startup news, check out the other articles on the website, and subscribe to the magazine for free. Listen to The Cereal Entrepreneur podcast for more interviews with entrepreneurs and big-hitters in the startup ecosystem.