Business Day (Nigeria)

Here are 10 female entreprene­urs shaking up the sports business

- CHARLES OGWO

It was John Wooden, a U.S basketball coach speaking on the expediency of people keeping their dreams alive, said, “Don't give up on your dreams, or your dreams will give up on you.” Here are the ten female entreprene­urs shaking up the sports business.

Allyson Felix:

Allyson is a sprint athlete, who was noticed early in her

career by Nike, and offered her a juicy deal.

However, a few months later, Allyson got pregnant

and Nike terminated the contract with allegation­s that

she would never be in shape after giving birth.

Despite all the difficulti­es, she maintained her

pregnancy and worse still had a caesarean section giving birth. Ten months later she made the decision to dare the odds and went back to training.

The world at large were stunned when Allyson won all her races and even broke Usain

Bolt's record for world titles and now has over 14 gold medals at the Championsh­ips.

Nike tried calling her again but she refused the offer

and launched her own shoe brand, which now earns much more than any shoe brand in the world would

pay her. Allyson Felix is worth over $4.5 million today for daring the odds.

Sally Bergesen:

She is the founder/ceo, Oiselle, an athletic apparel company in Seattle, USA. Sally also filled a gap in the market after, as a passionate runner, she was often unable to find her needs reflected in brands.

She has been conquering the market since 2007 with running clothing specially designed for women. Today, Sally Bergesen is considered one of the most exciting founders in the industry!

Donna Carpenter:

Donna became the chair and co-owner of Burton 2020. She is not the fulcrum behind the world's leading snowboard brand Burton. She also stands for equality and has always been a

Prior to the coming forth of quotas in the firm,

Donna made sure that female managers were present, since 1982 all athletes have received the same bonus at the Burton US Open and she

even restructur­ed the company so that women do not have to choose between a career and

children. Her net worth is estimated at $700million. Anne-laure Descours: Anne-laure is the chief sourcing officer at Puma. She is a prime model of how

to balance career and motherhood. That is why she chose Hong Kong as her adopted home over 20 years

ago and has since enjoyed the freedom to develop as a woman on the executive floor at Puma. In her

opinion, there is one crucial parameter missing in order to advance women in business in Germany: an

environmen­t that is designed for working mothers.

Ellie Evans:

Ellie is the founder and CEO at Elle Evans Swimwear, founded in 2013.The swimwear label Elle Evans combines a sustainabl­e vision with modern, fashionabl­e designs and is aimed at people who are passionate about the future and fashion. Ellie, the face behind the brand is a talented, forward-thinking and humble founder.

Ty Haney:

Ty is the founder of Outdoor Voices, a sports outfit brand establishe­d in 2014, with the vision to be sportswear the hottest trend among non-athletes. She stepped down as CEO of the company in 2020, with Gabrielle Conforti following in her footsteps. Today, Ty works in companies such as Get Joggy, which focuses on performanc­e supplement­s with CBD and THCV, and Try your Best, a platform that allows brands to collect contributi­ons from customers and receive rewards in return.

Franziska Hannig:

She is the founder of Inaska, a sportswear and swimwear outfit. Franziska, a nutrition and consumer economics graduate, knew clearly what she wanted at some point in her career, to leave a positive impact. Today she lives this with her brand Inaska, a sportswear and swimwear brand that is sustainabl­e and looks good on athletes. This is particular­ly evident in the leftover collection. This is where "good mood colour blocking" meets leftover fabrics from Ortovox. Franziska has a foresight of how future fashion works!

Tamara Hill-norton:

Tamara is the founder and creative director at Sweaty Betty. After opening the first Sweaty Betty store in Notting Hill in 1998, the British company grew rapidly and was named "Sports Retailer of the Year" by the Sports Industries Federation in 2001.

The business idea was born out of the lack of sportswear stores for women who led an active lifestyle. Sweaty Betty's goal is to make women feel strong and beautiful through fitness.

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