Jan. 14, 2025 /Mpelembe Media/ — The Bicester Collection’s Unlock Her Future Prize 2025 is a social entrepreneurship competition supporting women-led start-ups in South Asia. This initiative, part of The Bicester Collection’s DO GOOD philanthropic programme, offers grants, executive education, and mentorship to finalists. Partnering with Oxford University’s Saïd Business School and Ashoka South Asia, the competition aims to address the gender funding gap and promote gender equality. Winners will be announced in November 2025, celebrating The Bicester Collection’s 30th anniversary. Previous editions successfully supported female entrepreneurs in the Middle East and North Africa, and Latin America.
The sources do not directly state the challenges that hinder women’s entrepreneurship in South Asia, but they do provide context that suggests some of the difficulties these entrepreneurs face:
Funding Gaps: The Unlock Her Future Prize was launched in response to research indicating that if men and women were equally represented in entrepreneurship, global GDP could increase by 3% to 6%. However, fewer than 3% of women-led businesses receive venture capital funding, according to Harvard Business School. This suggests a significant funding gap for women entrepreneurs.
Access to Resources: The Bicester Collection’s mission includes providing female entrepreneurs with access to capital, education and influential networks, which suggests these resources may not be easily accessible without such initiatives. The Unlock Her Future Prize provides a business grant, an executive education programme, leadership coaching, expert mentors, and exposure through The Bicester Collection’s network. This implies that these are resources women entrepreneurs often lack.
Need for Support: The programme aims to identify and support women to launch and scale system-changing start-ups. The fact that this support is needed suggests that women entrepreneurs may struggle without it.
The Unlock Her Future Prize provides significant financial support to women social impact entrepreneurs. Specifically, the winners of the competition will each receive a business grant of up to US$100,000 to launch and scale their start-up. The programme has already committed approximately US$600,000 in grants and supported the launch of eight start-ups. This financial backing is intended to help women entrepreneurs overcome the funding gap they often face. In addition to the grants, the prize offers other forms of support, such as an executive education programme, leadership coaching, and access to mentors and networks.
The Unlock Her Future Prize has previously been hosted in the following geographic regions:
- MENA (Middle East and North Africa) in 2023
- LATAM (Latin America) in 2024
The 2025 edition of the prize will be held in South Asia, marking the first time the competition has been held in that region.
The Unlock Her Future Prize offers a comprehensive support system for:
Financial Support: Winners receive a business grant of up to US$100,000 to help them launch and scale their start-ups. The program has already committed approximately US$600,000 in grants.
Educational Support: The winners participate in an executive education programme with Oxford University’s Saïd Business School.
Leadership Development: They receive bespoke leadership coaching to help them achieve their personal and professional goals.
Mentorship: The winners gain access to expert mentors.
Networking: They benefit from exposure through The Bicester Collection’s global network.
Alumni Network: The winners join a prestigious alumnae network of social impact visionaries. its winners, which includes:
These resources are designed to address the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs, such as the funding gap and limited access to education and influential networks. By providing financial, educational, and mentorship opportunities, the Unlock Her Future Prize aims to empower women to launch successful businesses and create positive social impact.