The Female Founder’s Journey

Beth Kytle Chandler

Managing Director, Wealth Advisor

Some of the conversations I value most happen each month around a conference table with a group of accomplished female entrepreneurs.

I host my local Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO) chapter at our office, where we talk candidly about business strategy, finance, leadership, and the challenges of building and scaling a business. Eventually, there is the topic of succession planning, through sale, merger, or bringing in the next generation.

I have seen firsthand that the entrepreneurial journey can look very different for women. While every founder’s experience is unique, there are common threads for women: balancing the competing demands of business and family, finding support for taking risks, and gaining access to mentors, investors, and capital.

The disparity in access to capital is particularly striking. Female-founded companies receive only a small fraction of venture capital investment (estimates range from 1 to 3%), despite research from BCG showing that businesses founded by women can generate significantly more revenue per dollar invested than those founded by men.¹

But access to capital is only part of the financial story. I have also observed that many female founders devote enormous energy to building their companies, while spending far less time planning for their own financial futures.

My goal as a wealth advisor is not simply to prepare founders for an eventual transaction, but to help women make thoughtful decisions along the way so that the value they are creating in their companies ultimately supports their lives, families, and legacies.

Here are some of the lessons I have learned.

The Startup Phase: Build a Structure That Anticipates the Future

In the earliest years of a company, nearly all of a founder’s attention goes toward the business: product, customers, hiring, and cash flow. That makes sense. But these early years are also the time to make structural and financial decisions that are far easier to get right from the beginning than to fix later.

For example, founders building a high-growth business should carefully consider the appropriate entity structure. A C-corporation structure may offer advantages, including the potential to qualify for Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) treatment under Section 1202. For eligible founders, Section 1202 can exclude a significant portion, or potentially all, of the gain on qualifying stock from federal income tax when the business is eventually sold.

Changes enacted in 2025 expanded these benefits for qualifying stock acquired after July 4, 2025, including partial gain exclusions after three and four years, a full exclusion after five years, and increases to both the gain exclusion cap and the qualifying company asset limit. The lesson for founders is simple: decisions made when a company is relatively small can have significant tax consequences years later.

Early in the company’s life is also an important time to establish your financial foundation. Put in place your will, powers of attorney, and an estate plan, particularly while the value of the business is still relatively low. Transferring ownership interests through gifts or trusts early can allow future appreciation to occur outside your estate while using less of your gift and estate tax exemption. Once a sale is on the horizon, many of these planning opportunities become more limited.

The common thread is to build your foundation before you need it. Build your personal financial team — including a CPA, estate planning attorney, and potentially a wealth advisor — who can help ensure that the wealth you are creating in your business ultimately supports your personal goals and family.

The Growth Phase: Know Your Numbers

As a business grows, it’s easy to measure success by the company’s progress. But I encourage every female founder to ask another question: What am I building towards personally? Where do I want all of this hard work to take me financially?

A key part of answering that question is knowing your “number”— the amount of capital you need to sustain the life you want and achieve financial independence. Understanding that number well before a potential sale can provide clarity not only about your financial future, but also about the decisions you make today.

Eventually, the value you have spent years building in your company may become money in an investment account. That can be an emotional transition, especially for female founders. Something that once represented your time, identity, and life’s work is suddenly represented by a dollar amount. Having a financial plan in place beforehand can provide confidence and perspective during that transition. You should be able to answer the fundamental question: Do I have enough to achieve the life and goals I envision?

We call this number your “lifetime capital need,” and it’s something we calculate for our clients — not guess. Once you know that number, anything above it becomes a “wealth surplus,” capital that can be used for family, philanthropy, future generations, or other priorities important to you and your legacy.

And knowing your number matters long before you contemplate a sale. It can change how you think about risk, growth, and the value of your business. Founders who understand their personal financial needs early can make more informed decisions about raising capital, how aggressively to grow, and ultimately when to say yes to an offer, or have the confidence to walk away.

When Considering a Sale: Protecting What You Have Built, Not Just Its Price

In my experience, many female founders think about more than just the financial terms of a sale. They care deeply about what happens to the people, culture, and values they have built in their businesses. That perspective is a strength, and it means the highest offer may not always be the best offer. Understanding what matters most to you beyond price can be just as important as the number on the term sheet. A McKinsey survey of nearly 1,100 M&A leaders² found a telling statistic. Of the leaders surveyed, 44% cited a lack of cultural fit or friction between acquiring and target companies as the leading reason integrations fail.

Do your own due diligence on a potential buyer the way they are doing diligence on you. Talk to other founders who have been acquired by them. Watch and reflect on their behavior, not just their pitch deck. Clearly understand your role after the deal closes: what will be in your control, and what won’t be. The regret I see most often is founders held to a standard by their acquirer without being given the autonomy and resources to meet it during an earn-out. A scenario like this can potentially leave a lasting negative effect on how you feel about the exit as well as cost you financially.

Importantly, your wealth advisor team should be advising you through this entire process, not just at the closing table. They should help you think through non- competes, holdbacks, and employment agreements, for you and for your key employees. Taking care of your team through a transition builds loyalty into whatever comes next.

After a Transition: Give Yourself Time

A sale, or any major transition, isn’t the finish line. It’s the start of a new set of decisions that deserve the same care as the ones that got you there. Refresh your financial plan once you understand the full impact of taxes and net proceeds, because most women founders assume their spending won’t change. In my experience, it almost always does. Take your time building a portfolio rather than rushing into one and revisit your estate plan for any new considerations.

And prepare for something few people mention: increased financial visibility invites increased requests. I’ve watched female founders face real pressure from family and friends once their success becomes public. Knowing how to say no, including a simple “all financial decisions go through my wealth manager,” is one of the most valuable tools a female founder can have.

The Bigger Question

The entrepreneurial journey isn’t simply about reaching a successful exit. It is about building toward something larger — the freedom to make your next decision because you want to, not because you have to.

That, to me, is a real measure of success. Not simply the value of the business or the number in an investment account, but the life and legacy that number makes possible.

Female founders spend years thoughtfully building and planning for the future of their companies and those within them. My hope is that they bring that same intention and care to planning for their own futures.