The 2014 Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards are accepting applications until February 28th, 2014 at 10:00 AM (CET). The Awards are an exciting opportunity for female entrepreneurs to receive coaching and support for their early-stage businesses.

Finalists will be brought to Paris, France in October 2014 for Finale Week after four months of coaching, networking opportunities, and media exposure. The Finale Week in France includes entrepreneurship workshops, a presentation in front of the International Jury, and an invitation to the Global Women’s Forum Meeting.

During the Global Meeting Gala, the selected female entrepreneur that will receive an additional year of coaching and $20,000 USD in funding will be announced. The full year of coaching focuses primarily on business development. Past Cartier Award Winners cite the networking opportunities, the international exposure, and the one-to-one coaching as the most important benefits of the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards.

Submit your application for the 2014 Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards before February 28th.

About the Awards

The Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards offers one-to-one personalized business coaching for the eighteen finalists representing the top three projects of each continent.

The Cartier Women's Initiative Awards are an international business plan competition created in 2006 by Cartier, the Women's Forum, McKinsey & Company and INSEAD Business School to identify, support and encourage projects by women entrepreneurs.

The mission of the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards is threefold:

• To identify and support initial-phase women entrepreneurs through funding and coaching
• To foster the spirit of enterprise by celebrating role models in entrepreneurship
• To create an international network of women entrepreneurs and encourage peer networking

The Cartier Women's Initiative Awards aim to encourage the most vulnerable category of entrepreneurs in their most vulnerable phase: women entrepreneurs starting up. Since their inception in 2006, they have accompanied over 100 promising female business-owners and recognized 32 Laureates.

The Jury

TPD’s own Founder and CEO, Leslie Meingast sits on the International Jury Panel for the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards alongside many other talented and esteemed jurors from around the world including:

• Kimberlie Cerrone
• Nell Merlino
• Peggy Wallace
• Shelly Porges
• Daryn Fillis
• Diego Valenzuela
• Pablo Brenner
• Sônia Regina Hess De Souza
• Donatella Treu
• Iris Kronenbitter
• John Dickinson
• Leyla Alaton
• Lucy Kanu
• Nigest Haile
• Odile Lacoin
• Wendy Luhabe
• Hanan Saab
• Meisa Betayneh
• Miriem Bensalah Chaqroun
• Neveen El Tahri
• Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi
• Angela Joo-Hyun Kang
• Lena Yang
• Priya Paul
• Vivian Lau
• Xiaowei Rose Luo