St. Pete Catalyst; Published By: Mark Parker
Raechel Canipe (far right), founder of Women in Tech & Entrepreneurship, at a recent workshop hosted in partnership with the Tampa Bay Wave’s Women of Wave program. Photos provided.
A dues-free organization focused on supporting women in technology careers and those looking to start or accelerate businesses is opening a St. Petersburg chapter, just over four months after its launch.
According to a February report by Harvard Business Review, companies founded solely by women receive less than 3% of venture capital investments – while less than 15% write those checks. Raechel Canipe decided to help make a difference and founded Women in Tech and Entrepreneurship (WTE) in late December 2022.
While based in Tampa, crossing the bridge to St. Pete was an immediate goal for Canipe. The bootstrapped, decentralized “labor of love” will officially launch in the Sunshine City May 11.
“I feel humbled and overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and, frankly, the women who have rolled up their sleeves to help make this possible,” Canipe said. “We’re all volunteers at this point. While this has been in the roadmap, it wouldn’t be possible without those women.”
According to its mission statement, WTE is a community of high-performing and non-conforming women working in tech, startups, venture capital, entrepreneurship, economic development and business support organizations. The goal is to provide mentorship, educational opportunities and a support network to help offset gender discrepancies.
The movement is growing. Read more
