BEAUMONT, Texas — The state of Texas put together a competition to assist female entrepreneurs who had a hard year due to the pandemic.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2020 was an especially hard year for businesses that were women owned.
To apply for this competition, the business must be at least 51 percent owned by a woman, made $1 million or less in revenue in 2020 and employed 15 or less in 2020.
“I think its awesome that Texas wants to stand behind women entrepreneurs and give us this opportunity,” Amy Vanpelt, owner of Gaudie and Company said.
The end goal is to help small businesses recover post-pandemic.
“Small businesses are what took the biggest hit,” Vanpelt said. “Because we do not have global advertising, we do not have anybody backing us.”
Vanpelt was surprised to learn women were hit the hardest during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I think it is kind of surprising because women, especially moms, whenever we get into hard, difficult situations really know how to buckle down and grind through it," she said.
Buckling down and grinding through is exactly what Vanpelt said she did during the pandemic to keep her store open.
“When the pandemic hit, all of my staff stayed home,” Vanpelt said. “So, my daughter and I basically did every single role to keep the business open.”
Vanpelt encourages everyone to who is applicable to apply.
“I feel like the best advice that I could give a woman entrepreneur is to go with their gut,” she said.
The deadline is based on what region each competitor is in.