in 2018, they did so to teach their children about their Hindu culture in the best way they knew how: with stuffed animals and picture books. Though they’ve achieved their goal, Sarkar says the journey hasn’t been easy.
“It’s ironic: Becoming a mom is what really inspired me to become an entrepreneur,” says Sarkar, 37. “But being a mom is what I feel sometimes holds me back from being an entrepreneur to the best of my ability.”by some of her fellow South Asian entrepreneurs. She applied and was accepted into the 2021 cohort, which kicked off in June.
Launched in 2015 to give women founders the support they need to succeed, Tory Burch’s eponymous initiative has given six cohorts of over 180 women more than $1.5 million in grants, and the classes of 2020 and 2021 access to no-interest loans. As long as funding to women-owned businesses remains marginal—female founders received just 2.3% of all venture capital dollars last year, down from 2.