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Entrepreneur Hannah Weisberg is on a mission to inspire, empower and connect females from all backgrounds and walks of life.
“It’s a new dawn. It’s a new day. And I’m feeling…” inspired. 2021 is the year the glass ceiling shattered into a million pieces at our feet. 2021 is the year that a woman of color began serving as the vice president of the United States for the first time ever. 2021 is also the year a woman took the football field in a referee role (Sarah Thomas)—a role held previously exclusively by men—on the world’s biggest football stage: the Super Bowl (!). And countless other females rose up this year and stuck it to the man, proving that women are indeed capable of truly great things.
Including Raleigh entrepreneur Hannah Weisberg. When her budding brick-and-mortar Dove & Olive Mercantile (a women-supporting-women event space where Weisberg would host workshops and private events) was forced to shutter due to the pandemic, instead of throwing in the towel, “nevertheless, she persisted”—as women do best—and used that setback as fuel to not only open a new business, but to create something bigger and better that empowers other women to do the same.
Enter Women’s Social Club, a monthly member-based organization whose main focus is support: support for women, support for local businesses and support for each other. Inspired by the original idea of Dove & Olive, the org holds three socials a month where women from all walks of life—some entrepreneurs, some artists, some tech leaders, etc.—meet to network, grow and collaborate.
“It’s a way for these members to explore their city, make new friends and get plugged into their community,” says Weisberg. “We have people come share about [everything from] imposter syndrome, building a brand, maintaining online presences—things like that.”
Weisberg takes a layered approach to the group, remaining intentional about how she chooses her workshops, venues and partners—always reaching back and putting money in the hands of the women who helped her. One of those venues has been abuzz as of late: Hartwell—a new retail space offering local makers markets, workshops and events—of which Weisberg is the managing partner. For her, helping Hartwell with its name, brand, website, social media presence, community and vendor partnerships was a way to put her business model and passion for helping women into practice.
“The venues we partner with are at least partially women-owned and -run, so we’re putting money back into serving them,” explains Weisberg. “All of our speakers and workshop partners are local female business owners, makers or artisans, so then we’re putting money back into supporting their business…. Adding: “One of our partners made $5,000 a month on member sign-ups for her business. That’s life-changing. That impact is massive for women in communities everywhere.”
And if seeing is believing, there’s no doubt Weisberg has made a significant impact on the female population here in Raleigh (and beyond—WSC’s NYC Chapter launches in October 2022 with pop-up socials beginning in February), and she’s just one of the many women who are setting the stage for female empowerment across the country. From sports fields and stages to board rooms and labs to the White House to small businesses (!), women are creating community. Women are playing. Women are speaking. Women are being seen. Women are being heard. And women are inspiring both on and off the field. #GirlPower thewomenssocialclub.co
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