Tory Burch Foundation Welcomes Cecilia Flores as one of the 50 women entrepreneurs into the Annual Fellows Program

 New York, NY: Friday, June 25, 2021 – The Tory Burch Foundation announced today the 50 early-stage women entrepreneurs selected for the 2021 class of the Tory Burch Foundation Fellows Program, now in its seventh year.

Receiving over a thousand applications, the Foundation selected a cohort of diverse small businesses for the year-long education program. The Fellows also have access to a premier online peer-to-peer network, a $5,000 grant for business education, inventory loan-fund and extensive mentorship opportunities.
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Traditionally providing four days of workshops in Tory Burch’s New York office, the program evolved in 2020 to focus on virtual learning due to the pandemic. “We pivoted quickly and redesigned our programs to navigate women through the crisis,” noted Laurie Fabiano, President of the Tory Burch Foundation. “As a result, we found better ways to deliver programming and meet the greatest needs of our community.”

Tory welcomed the new group of Fellows. “To amass this group of women is why I started the company,” said Tory Burch in a virtual welcome address to the incoming Fellows class. “I don’t talk about it a lot, but 17 years ago, that was my business plan: to start a global fashion company so I could start a foundation for women. To see it come to fruition like this; to see this beauty on my screen; hearing you speak, is so inspiring.”

Hailing from 18 states and Washington, D.C., and ranging in age from 24 to 60, the 2021 Fellows are diverse in every sense of the word. The top industries represented are retail, apparel, food/beverage and technology, with two entrepreneurs making strides in the male-dominated construction industry. Several of the companies represented are purpose-driven, with many focusing on sustainability initiatives. Fifty-eight percent are founders of color.

The majority of the entrepreneurs have been in business less than five years, and considering that nearly half of all small businesses fail within those first five years, it is a critical time. In addition, women founders are less likely to pass $1 million in revenue.

The Foundation is dedicated to helping the Fellows reach and surpass these key indicators of success.

The 2021-2022 Fellows program is made possible with support from:
BDT Capital
Fossil
General Atlantic Foundation
Rene Kern
Trott Family Philanthropies
American Express
Deloitte
Luxottica
PayPal
Shiseido

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