On International Women’s Rights Day, we usually celebrate the pioneers who shattered the glass ceiling. But we rarely stop to ask: once that ceiling is broken, are we forced to climb to the top alone?
The traditional image of an entrepreneur is that of a lone conqueror. A CEO who “disrupts” the market, sacrificing everything for astronomical turnovers while embodying a almost warrior-like strength. It is a model rooted in domination and individual accumulation, born from an economic system that is itself a source of inequalities affecting many, especially women.
What if the real entrepreneurial revolution was collective?
Choosing the cooperative or non-profit model means accepting the challenge of deconstructing the mental “software” society installed in us as children. We were taught that to succeed, we had to be the best, the only one, the most high-performing. This obsession with uniqueness fuels rivalry between women, a major roadblock to our collective emancipation.
Collective entrepreneurship forces us to make a radical move: putting the “we” before the “I.” This model relies on collective ownership and democratic governance that supports the inclusion of diverse perspectives. It is through small, daily gestures of inclusion that we truly make a difference in people’s lives.
In our cooperative, we’ve witnessed the birth of an “organic sisterhood” among women bound by both parenthood and entrepreneurship, two worlds often deemed incompatible.
Last May, during the Social Economy Summit, the data regarding the economic trajectory of women in Quebec was striking. Research shows that the economic path of women is punctuated by four major life events: entry into the workforce, parenthood, caregiving, and retirement, that can lead to lasting economic inequalities. Specifically, the weight of parenthood, including pregnancy and career interruptions, significantly impacts women’s income. These inequities accumulate over a lifetime, creating significant income gaps by the time we reach retirement.
How many women have shelved their ambitions because “the kids are too small”? By betting on the collective, we’ve created a space where we can grow as entrepreneurs with our parental roles, not in spite of them. In the social economy, inclusion isn’t just about recruiting; it’s about broadening perspectives and innovating to meet the real needs of our communities.
People often say that in a collective, we move slower. That’s true. But we move together, co-creating innovative solutions for shared realities. This model allows for the creation of jobs within safe work environments where everyone can truly thrive.
While traditional entrepreneurship aims to conquer the world, collective entrepreneurship aims to transform it by reinvesting surpluses back into the community. By choosing co-creation, we tap into a power of gathering that has been underestimated for too long.
The solution to inequity isn’t a solo race to the top; it’s our ability to form a united front. By reclaiming the economy through collective ownership, we aren’t just cracking the glass ceiling, we are changing the very structure of the building so it can finally welcome everyone.
At L’Entourage, we firmly believe the future will be feminist, social, and collective, or it won’t be at all. Because it is together, in this sisterhood of purpose, that we are building an economy that finally works for us.
