Kick-start Vrije Vrouwen met Ballen

Being a tech- oriented city, Eindhoven’s business world has consisted mostly of men and relatively few women. Those who assume that there are simply not that many venturous, intelligent women inhabiting the city, were proven wrong last Friday, on the 16^th of August. At BioArt, we hosted the kick-start for ‘Vrije Vrouwen met Ballen’: a collective of thirty female entrepreneurs, based in, or near, Eindhoven, organized by Sandra Poelman, Daniëlle van Bakel and Sietske Aussems.

Where you would expect a network event for businesspeople to attract suits and ties, the invited guests appeared in the most various, colorful outfits, contributing to a more informal, though no less professional meeting. While some of them are just starting out for themselves, others have had their own business for over twenty years. Interestingly, the women’s occupations are even more diverse: ranging from sports advisor to communicator, graphic facilitator and urban redeveloper, these women have one thing in common: they are here to share experiences, tips, strengths and weaknesses that go paired with owning a business as well as being a women in a male dominated environment.

The event started with a general speech, followed up by an introduction of all attendees. Next was a series of three- minute speed dates, where the women discussed various issues they encounter in the every day life of owning a business. ‘Instead of having a sense of competition, or people trying to sell you their business, this network event completely revolved around sharing experiences and helping each other succeed’, one of the attendees notices. ‘This event brought up many positive developments. For one, collectives like these help increase visibility of women in business.’ ‘To show the rest of the world that women can have balls!’

‘But seriously,’ someone else continues, ‘what made this event special was that most attendees were open to talk not only about their successes, but also to making themselves vulnerable and discuss insecurities surrounding their work. For example, some of us have experienced difficulties in financial negotiations. By talking about this with those sharing this experience and those who are more skilled in this type of negotiation, we can all become more skilled. Showing your vulnerabilities can be really hard, but in the end, it can help you move forward. Thàt is what it means to have balls.’

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