Small Business and the Woman's Prerogative: How Legacy Women's Financial Is Changing the Face of Banking. (Briefing)
2003; American Bankers Association; Volume: 95; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
0194-5947
Autores Tópico(s)Finance, Markets, and Regulation
ResumoSmall businesses have been the backbone of American industry and history. From Henry Ford's model T built on the first assembly line to Bill Gates' Microsoft operating software that made computing not only feasible but also economical. But let's not forget the women who have added their own touch to this history reel. For example, there's Gabrielle Coco Chanel, who innovated the fashion world both domestically and internationally by becoming one of the first women to own a business independently. Or, take Lucille Ball, who was not only the well known performer from the television show, I Love Lucy, but also was one of the first women to own a majority share of a major Hollywood production company, Desilu. These female entrepreneurs (and others like them) helped to change the business landscape. In 2003, their can spirit continues. According to the Center for Women s Business Research, Washington, D.C., in 2002, an estimated 6.2 million U.S. privately held businesses were majority-owned by women, accounting for 28% of all businesses. These woman-owned businesses (WOBs) generated $1.15 trillion dollars in sales and employed 9.2 million people. Within the top 50 metropolitan areas, WOBs accounted for half of the employment and sales for their region. With women owned businesses on the rise, there the need for effective, supportive financial advice. Legacy Bank of Texas, Plano, saw that fact clearly when it formed the Legacy Women's Financial Division in 1999. Susan Moore, division president and senior vice-president of Legacy Bank says that with women business owners as its primary focus, Women's Financial sought to be more than a bank. One of the things that make us different, states Moore, is that we are running on a horizontal scale rather than a vertical one. We offer clients various products across the board. This comes in handy for the clientele of Legacy's Women Financial, 53% of whom are woman business owners accounting for some $12 million in assets. By using the resources of the bank within its project team, which Moore calls her subject matter experts, Women's Financial able to establish relationships and treat women as business people rather than members of specialty niches. The psychology of it all It was Moore herself who approached her board in the late '90s with the idea of creating a division that served women business owners and their personal financial needs. The leadership of Legacy Bank liked the idea and decided to do follow-up research. …
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