In December 1990, Sandy Sutton, the U.S. Small Business Administration's District Director, decided that it was time for Orange County's women's business community to join the ranks of NAWBO. Sandy reached out to 10 prominent business woman and challenged them to find a core group of 30 to qualify as a NAWBO chapter. It took less than 2 months to find these woman who were ready, willing, and able to form a chapter.

In February, 1991, the chapter received its certification from National, and Nita Busby was elected the first president of the fledgling Orange County Chapter. Nita was followed by Presidents Linda Pinson, Judee Slack, Rachel Owens and Karen Herb. The efforts of these ladies laid the foundation for one of the most vibrant chapters in the country.

Many of our programs (Remarkable Women Awards, dinner meetings, retreats) have been adopted successfully by other chapters. In 1999 and 2001, National NAWBO awarded Orange County their "Healthy Chapter" Award. Several Orange County members have also been honored by National with individual awards. The chapter's growth rate and retention are among the highest in the country. And though this is not a concrete measure of success, nearly everyone who visits our monthly dinner meetings comments on the huge amount of energy they feel in the room... We must be doing something right!

Chapter membership automatically includes membership in the national and state organizations.

NAWBO-OC Mission:
To position women business owners for profits, power and the passionate pursuit of excellence.

NAWBO-OC Strategic Goals:
By 2007, NAWBO-OC will be the organization of choice for 500 diverse women business owners, delivering $250,000 in revenues and an 85% membership retention rate.

NAWBO-OC Key Objectives:
To provide focused business development; informational resources; visibility; relationships.

NAWBO-OC Values:

• Entrepreneurship
• Integrity
• Courageous communication
• Community responsibility
• Excellence

THE NUMBERS...

• Center For Women's Business Research / Wells Fargo Bank 2004 reports
  - Women-Owned Businesses in Orange County, CA, 2004: A Fact Sheet
  - Women-Owned Businesses in California, 2004: A Fact Sheet
  - Women-Owned Businesses in Top 50 Metropolitan Areas Growing Three Times the Rate of All Businesses
  - Women-Owned Businesses in Top 50 Metro Areas: Press Release
• NAWBO-OC Member Survey Results Here’s a small sample... "71% of NAWBO-OC members report doing business with other NAWBO members. Our members have been in business for an average of 11.7 years and employ an average of 5.3 people. Most members joined for networking and business development opportunities..." VIEW Executive Summary and detailed responses (336K PDF).
• Women-Owned Business Statistics, 2002
• Results of National NAWBO Member Survey (228K PDF)
• Report Says Minority Women-Owned Businesses Increasing (Word format) The Center for Women's Business Research reports the number of minority women-owned businesses is expected to reach 1.2 million in 2002, and that California has greatest number of these firms.
• CA WOB Fact Sheet (PDF format) In this fact sheet, the Center for Women’s Business Research presents the most up-to-date information currently available on majority-owned, privately-held women-owned businesses in California. Data provided by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. (released 2002)
• New Generation of Women Entrepreneurs Achieving Business Success Research conducted by the Center for Women’s Business Research (released 2001)

NAWBO traces its origins to a small group of Washington, D.C., business women who began meeting informally to talk about mutual experiences, exchange information, and develop business skills. Recognizing the value of the group, they incorporated as the National Association of Women Business Owners on December 19, 1974.

NAWBO is the only dues-based national organization representing the interests of all women entrepreneurs in all types of businesses. There are more than 80 chapters across the United States, with a total of more than 8,000 members. NAWBO is represented in 33 countries across the world through its affiliation with Les Femmes Chefs d' Enterprises Mondiales (FCEM -- World Association of Women Entrepreneurs). For more information, visit www.nawbo.org. For a list of US chapters see http://nawbo.org/chapters/index.php.

NAWBO-California, the most influential women's organization in the state, represents nearly 1 million California women-owned businesses. The state association is run by a dynamic group of business leaders who are forging alliances and breaking boundaries to build better businesses by linking growing companies with the global economy, as well as sharing resources, skills, and expertise. The state chapter is trying very hard to make California more business-friendly by actively communicating pro-business positions to our legislators in Sacramento.

NAWBO-CA has nine chapters located in the major metropolitan areas throughout the state: Desert Cities, Inland Empire, Los Angeles, Orange County, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and Ventura County. For more information about NAWBO-California, please call 888-NAWBO-CA. The California website is undergoing an extensive overhaul, so stay tuned! To visit the California chapters see the CA website.

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