April Day | March 21, 2014
Published on March 18, 2014
April Day, president of Women’s Business Enterprise (WBEA) Alliance, is preparing for the 2014 WBEA Business Expo
On Bauer Business Focus — A conversation on Houston women-owned business with Houston Public Media News 88.7 Business Reporter Andrew Schneider.
Women’s Business Enterprise Alliance President April Day is preparing for the organization’s 2014 WBEA Business Expo, where more than 1,500 women business owners and WBEA members will explore business opportunities. The event has gained momentum in recent years as more women become business owners in Houston.
Day recently stopped by Bauer Business Focus to discuss the current climate facing women business owners and to offer her take on Houston’s glass ceiling.
“I don’t really see a glass ceiling for women in Houston. I think women in Houston are leading the charge in becoming CEOs in their own companies and leading their companies,” Day said. “I see that we are really opening the door and expanding that territory. We have a lot of women-owned businesses at the WBEA that participate in what one would call ‘male-dominated industries,’ and I see them breaking through the ceiling.”
In Texas there are more than 800 WBEA-certified businesses that bring in $9 billion in revenue and provide 48,000 jobs within the Houston area alone. WBEA aims to provide opportunities to women-owned businesses and leaders in the 94 counties it serves, Day said.
“Our mission is to provide opportunities to women-owned business and corporate entities through education, programming and networking,” Day added. “The reason why we’re doing that is because we’re looking at a sort of corporate procurement. We do the national certification that certifies women-owned businesses as women business enterprises. Then we connect them to those procurement opportunities within the corporate realm and within the federal realm.”
Click here to hear the full interview.