REGIONAL AWARDS

In this section, you will find everything you need to know about the application and selection process of the Regional Awards. 

The next call for applications will open from April 18 to June 25, 2025.

The fellows, representing the top three businesses from each of the nine regions, will receive:

FINANCIAL CAPITAL SUPPORT

• US$ 100,000 grant for each first-place awardee

• US$ 60,000 grant for each second-place awardee

• US$ 30,000 grant for each third-place awardee

• Access to CWI Loan Fund, which offers loans up to US$200,000 to CWI fellows at preferential interest rates

HUMAN CAPITAL SUPPORT

Our fellowship program is part of the human capital support we offer our fellows. It focuses on several key areas of human capital support for women impact entrepreneurs and offers a combination of 1:1 training and collective workshops.

• 1:1 training in specific business areas

• 1:1 advice sessions with subject matter experts in CWI Community

• Community peer learning and networking sessions

• Online and in-person leadership communications and media training workshops

• In-person INSEAD Women Impact Entrepreneurship Program

• 1:1 leadership capacity executive coaching by The Women’s Impact Alliance (formerly The Coaching Fellowship)

SOCIAL CAPITAL SUPPORT

Throughout the program, we strive to highlight the social and environmental impact created by our fellows and bridge connections between women impact entrepreneurs and their supporters.

• International exposure and media visibility

• Access to an online and offline community of 700+ experts and peers

• Ongoing support for the development of the fellows’ businesses

The Regional Awards of the Cartier Women’s Initiative are looking for women-owned and women-led impact-driven businesses. Entrepreneurs across all sectors and geographies are encouraged to apply.

To be considered for this award, the applicant and the applicant’s business must meet the following eligibility criteria:

For-profit: The business should be designed to generate sufficient revenue to support its operations and return some level of profit to its owners. Non-profit enterprises are not eligible. That said, the business does not have to be profitable at the time of application.

Early-stage: The business should have a proven business model and be in the initial phase of its development and growth (between 1 and 6 years of licensed/registered operations as of the date of application). This means that businesses applying to the 2024 edition must have been incorporated between June 2017 and June 2022.

Revenue generation: The business should be generating revenue from the sales of its products and/or services for at least 1 year as of the date of application, recurring according to your business cycle. For businesses applying to the 2024 edition, this means that they need to have been generating revenue since June 2022.

Fundraising: The business should not have raised more than US$2 million in dilutive funding as of the date of application. Dilutive funding is any kind of funding that requires you to give away a piece of your company, including not only future profits, but possibly control. The Regional Awards cap the funds raised in order to ensure that the businesses selected fall within a similar range of development. Please note that businesses that have not raised any external funding are also encouraged to apply.

Positive impact: The business should demonstrate that it has realized positive impact in its industry and that it has the potential to realize even more impact as it scales. It should contribute to at least one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs are a collection of 17 global goals set by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015 for the year 2030. The SDGs are a call for action by all countries to promote prosperity while protecting the environment. They cover a series of social, economic, and environmental development issues.

Leadership: The applicant must be a woman and she must fill one of the main leadership positions, for example as CEO, COO, CTO, General Manager, or Managing Director of the business.

Ownership: The business must be majority owned by its founders and team members at the time of application. The applicant must be part of the founding team. Moreover, one of the following conditions must be met: (1) a woman or multiple women are the largest shareholder(s) of founder equity (not total equity), or (2) the applicant owns a share greater or equal to that of each of her co-founder(s). Sole proprietorships are ineligible for the Regional Awards. A sole proprietorship is an unincorporated business that is not a separate legal entity from the business owner. The business owner has unlimited liability (i.e. the business owner is personally liable for all the debts and losses of the sole proprietorship). It is also known as individual entrepreneurship, solo trader, or simply proprietorship.

Legal entry age: The applicant must be at least 18 years of age on the day of the application deadline (June 30, 2023).

English proficiency: A good command of the English language is required. We require the Common European Framework of Reference Level B2 or above. This level requires an understanding of the main ideas of complex text, technical discussion in business and your field of specialization, and an ability to interact with fluency and spontaneity with native speakers. English proficiency is important because this is the common language for the Cartier Women's Initiative team, its partners, the jury members and the overall community. Being proficient will allow the fellow to fully participate in the community and in the fellowship. Applicants with disabilities are encouraged to apply, and every effort will be made to include them appropriately.

Time commitment: The applicant must commit to participating in the fellowship program from January 2024 to January 2025. Fellows will be expected to dedicate 1 to 3 hours/week virtually to the program from January 2024 to January 2025, as well as two days of on-site filming of the fellow and their business between the end of December 2023 and the start of January 2024. In addition to the virtual training, fellows will be expected to attend one week of in-person events in May 2024 in Shenzhen, China. Fellows will also be required to report their impact for three years after completing their fellowship.

Application: The applicant should be the author of the application. We accept only one application per business. Furthermore, a business will only be considered for one award category, so pick the category where your business fits the best: refer to FAQ. Businesses that submit applications to multiple award categories will be disqualified.

To apply, you need to complete the online application form and provide the supporting documentation listed below.

Compulsory

• Your resume

• Your business registration document

• Your business financial statements for the most recent financial year (unaudited acceptable)

• Your pitch deck: we are not looking for a specific format, just submit an existing pitch deck that accurately describes the impact of your business. This can be an investor presentation or a product presentation (no more than 15 pages max.).

• A one-minute video of yourself in which you answer the following questions: 

- What is your motivation behind solving the problem that you have identified? 

- What is the impact you wish to create through your solution?   

- What do you wish to gain/contribute to the Cartier Women’s Initiative community?

Optional

• Your business’ impact framework (Theory of Change)

• Your business’ competitive landscape

• 3 additional attachments of your choice: image of product, brochure, press, article, research, etc.

These documents must be submitted with the online application and cannot be sent separately.

SELECTION CRITERIA

The Jury evaluates the applications based on the following criteria:

·Embedded positive impact

We are looking for impact businesses that will create more impact as they scale. We consider:

• Intentionality: was the business created to solve a social or environmental problem?
• Embeddedness: is positive impact locked into the business model?
• Magnitude: is there significant (number of people: local to global) and/or (degree of change: marginal to transformational) of impact?
• Measurement: is the business tracking and managing to optimize impact?
• Impact potential: Is the impact potential and/or already realized?

·Market analysis and fit

We are looking for businesses that have operationalized a unique solution to a large, unmet need. We consider:

• Product-Market fit: Has the business provided evidence of the market?
• Competitive advantage: Does the business have clear, long-term, defensible competitive advantage?
• Expansion: Does the market have room for growth and does the business have potential to expand to other geographies?

·Sustainable business and financial model

We are looking for businesses that have the potential to be profitable. We consider:

• Financial sustainability: Does the business have sufficient financial return potential to reach profitability?
• Scalability: Is the business model scalable (good margins, unit economics, repeat sales)?
• Loyalty: Is the business likely to retain and upsell existing customers?
• Well thought-out: Are expectations (sales cycles, price setting, etc) and models well thought out and defensible?

·Strategy and execution

We are looking for businesses with a plan and system to scale. We consider:

• Growth strategy: Does the business have an expansion plan with clear goals and resource requirements?
• Risk assessment: Has the business thoroughly evaluated risks and capabilities?
• Monitoring systems: Does the business have dynamic mechanisms to monitor execution?

·Team

We are looking for a capable team to build the business. We consider:

• Complementarity: Is the team diverse, with 2-4 members who complement each other?
• Technical skill: Does the team have relevant technical/leadership skills and experience?
• Track record: Does the team have track record of execution and/or significant achievement?
• Network: Does the team have relevant networks and advisors?

·Leadership character of applicant

We are looking for bold impact leaders, who can attract talent and foster purpose-driven team culture. We consider:

• Entrepreneurial spirit: Does the applicant display integrity, motivation and high energy, entrepreneurial approach?
• Cartier values: Does the applicant display the following character traits: Curiosity, Open-Mindedness, Generosity, Sharing, Respect, Rigor, Independence?

·Commitment to CWI vision and community

We are looking for fellows who will become active, lifelong members of our community.We consider whether the applicant is aligned with:

• Our vision: A world in which every woman impact entrepreneur driving social change can achieve her full potential
• Our mission: To provide women impact entrepreneurs with the necessary financial, social and human capital support to grow their business and build their leadership skills
• Empowering women: Does the applicant empower women within their business, including inclusive policies, procedures or processes; as well as engagement with other stakeholders (partners, suppliers, etc.)? Does the applicant empower women through their external engagements? Does the applicant have a desire to share their expertise/contribute to the CWI community?

SELECTION PROCESS

The selection process includes shortlisting, in-depth due diligence on the top five applicants in each region, and presentation before the jury. The jury selects and ranks the top three applicants who become our fellows. The announcement of the ranking for the Regional Awards takes place during the awards ceremony.