EmpowHer 1.0 to Support 6,000 Womenpreneurs in Tamil Nadu

By: WE Staff | Wednesday, 4 March 2026

• StartupTN and the TNWeSafe Project have launched an initiative called EmpowHer 1.0
• The programme aims to support more than 6,000 aspiring women entrepreneurs in one year
• It is focused on improving women-led enterprise development in Tamil Nadu

EmpowHer 1.0 is a new initiative created through a partnership of StartupTN and the TNWeSafe Project providing support to up to 6000 future female business owners within one-year} and also aims to strengthen female entrepreneurship across Tamil Nadu.

The first cohort is made up of 160 women business owners from the Chennai, Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu, and Tiruvallur areas that were accepted into the program after a formal application process.

According to StartupTN, the program kicked off with a two-day workshop that is focused on helping the participants to develop their ideas for their businesses into formalized business plans.

In addition to helping the participants to develop their ideas, the boot camp portion of the program included sessions on developing a founder's mindset, working through how to turn their ideas into tangible business concepts through hands-on workshops, developing their pitches so they can communicate effectively with prospective investors and working on how to identify and mitigate any risks that could arise with their business by using reverse brainstorming.

The second portion of the workshop also included some foundation development for female business leaders in order to enhance their leadership skills, improve their decision making and encourage them to have the growth mindset.

Once the boot camp has been completed, the participants will have access to a mentor and a structured plan to assist them with their continued entrepreneurial development.