The country’s women entrepreneurs from Tier 2, 3, and beyond towns are ambitious, digitally aware, and determined to grow – but structural gaps in finance, networks, and visibility hold them back. According to the Bharat Women Aspiration Index (BWAI) 2025, released by Tide, 70% of women business owners want to improve their financial, marketing, and digital skills to scale their ventures.
Yet, 86% rarely or never participate in any business networks, cutting them off from critical peer support. Even though they run their businesses, 52% still need a male family member to access credit – reflecting deep-seated gatekeeping in credit systems. These findings highlight why India’s Naari Shakti mission is so important – to help women reach their full potential by removing barriers that limit their economic independence.
Tide surveyed over 1,300 new and existing women business owners (aged 18–55 years) across non-metro cities for the second edition of BWAI. The study aims to capture the aspirations and pain points of women entrepreneurs from Tier 2, 3, and beyond towns in India – shedding light on the opportunities and challenges they face.
Gurjodhpal Singh, CEO, Tide India: “The BWAI 2025 findings reflect a deep aspiration among women entrepreneurs in India’s smaller towns – but show that big challenges remain. Many women are more confident in their ability to manage finances and market their businesses. However, barriers like limited access to formal networks, digital tools, and financing – some still routed through male intermediaries – remain widespread.”
The BWAI 2025 report deep-dives into the motivations, skill gaps, and socio-economic constraints that shape the entrepreneurial journeys of women in Bharat. The survey further highlighted that as many as 58% of women entrepreneurs expressed a strong interest in learning financial management and marketing skills, recognising their importance for business growth and long-term success.
The study also revealed that many women entrepreneurs rarely take part in networking activities—only 14%. Half of the respondents said they network very little: 28% rarely participate, and 22% have never attended a networking event.
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