The Regional Awards of the Cartier Women’s Initiative are looking for women-run and women-owned impact-driven businesses. Entrepreneurs across all sectors and geographies are encouraged to apply.

To be considered for the Regional Awards, the applicant and her business must meet the following eligibility criteria:

- For-profit: The business should be designed to generate sufficient revenues to support its operations and return some level of profit to its owners. Non-profit enterprises are not eligible.
- Early-stage: The business should have a proven business model and be in the initial phase of its development and growth (between 1 and 6 years of licensed/registered operations as of the date of application). This means that businesses applying to the 2023 edition must have been incorporated between June 2016 and June 2021.
- Revenue generation: The business should be generating revenue from the sales of its products and/or services for at least 1 year as of the date of application. For businesses applying to the 2023 edition, this means that they need to have been generating revenue since June 2021. It is understood that a business that is generating revenue is not necessarily profitable in its first years of operations.
- Fundraising: The business should not have raised more than US$2 million in dilutive funding.
- Positive Impact: The business should meet at least one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). See: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/
- Leadership: The applicant must be a woman and she must fill one of the main leadership positions, for example as CEO, COO, CTO, General Manager, or Managing Director of the business.
- Ownership: The business must be majority owned by its founders and team members at the time of application. The applicant must be part of the founding team. Moreover, at least one of the business’s founders must be a woman and a woman and/or multiple women must be the largest shareholder(s) of founder equity (not total equity) in the business or own a share at least equal to that of her/their male co-founder(s).
- Legal entry age: The lead entrant must be 18 on the day of the application deadline.
- English proficiency: A good command of the English language is required (both verbal and written). The Common European Framework of Reference Level B2 and above is required. This level requires an understanding of the main ideas of complex text, technical discussion in business and applicant's field of specialization and an ability to interact with fluency and spontaneity with native speakers.
- Time commitment: The applicant must commit to participating in the fellowship program from January 2023 to December 2023. She will be expected to dedicate up to 4 hours/week virtually to the program from January 2023 to May 2023 and up to 2 hours/week virtually from June 2023 to December 2023. In addition to the virtual training, the applicant will also be expected to attend one week of in-person training in May 2023. Beyond the fellowship, there are also two days of on-site filming of the fellow and her business in the first quarter of 2023.

All applicants who have been selected as fellows are considered ineligible for future editions.

Upcoming Events:
- Financial and Business Model Sustainability Applicant Workshop - May 31, 2022, 10 A.M. CEST
Register at https://richemont.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAufuqopjkjHNDCu__kBHly8N2sJ4Eq4yaS.
- Financial and Business Model Sustainability Applicant Workshop - June 1, 2022, 5 P.M. CEST
Register at https://richemont.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJApdeCgrj0iHNZbO6ltaHQ8ZsSWwmMx_tB3.
- Ask Me Anything Information Session - June 2, 2022, 8:30 A.M.
Register at https://richemont.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEkc-6trzIjGNKv9sg63eJkWeFQBqV1o3Qb.
- Embedded Positive Impact Applicant Workshop - June 14, 2022, 10 A.M. CEST
Register at https://richemont.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJYpdeivrT8uGte-s_H6oLiR1zKC-Om5qLER.
- Embedded Positive Impact Applicant Workshop - June 15, 2022, 5 P.M. CEST
Register at https://richemont.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMuf-6trjksHdUUOWFAIjLggj0_ESXwaxcm.

For more information about the above events, see the URL for Full Text, below.

The call for applications for the 2023 edition is now open and will close on Thursday, June 30, 2022, 2 p.m. Central European Summer Time (CEST).

Applicants will be notified of their application status in January 2023. The fellows will then be announced in April 2023.

Once you submit your application on the online platform, you will receive an automatic confirmation email.

The selection process is divided into two rounds: the selection of the fellows and the ranking of the fellows to determine the first-place, second-place, and third-place awardees.
- Round 1: The jury selects the top three applicants of each region on the basis of their application form. The top three applicants become fellows.
- Round 2: The fellows are invited to the final round, which includes submitting further business information and presenting their business in front of their regional jury panel. Based on the selection criteria, the jury selects the first-place, second-place, and third-place awardees. The announcement of the ranking for the Regional Awards will take place during the Awards Ceremony.

Participants may only submit one business.

Toolbox: https://www.cartierwomensinitiative.com/toolbox

About the Fellowship program: https://www.cartierwomensinitiative.com/fellowship

FAQs: https://www.cartierwomensinitiative.com/faq

About the Cartier Women's Initiative: https://www.cartierwomensinitiative.com/about-us

About the UN Sustainable Development Goals: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/