News Releases

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - March 7, 2013) - In recognition of International Women's Day, BMO Bank of Montreal conducted a survey that revealed one-third (36 per cent) of women are interested in starting their own business within the next 10 years.

Furthermore, the majority (57 per cent) of Canadian women who would consider starting their own business say one of the primary reasons for doing so would be the opportunity to do something they love.

"Finding something you are passionate about and love doing every day is important when considering whether you should start your own business. It's almost as important as translating ideas into practice and finding customers," said Joanne Gassman, Senior Vice President, BMO Bank of Montreal. "Owning and operating your own business can be time consuming. Yet, being your own boss can give you greater flexibility in your life and also provide an opportunity to build something truly unique.

"Fortunately, when starting out on your own business venture, you don't need to be alone. There are a variety of resources available including online blogs, websites, and organizations such as the Women Presidents' Organization where you can share information with other women business owners, seek out mentors and take inspiration from role models," Ms. Gassman added.

Other key findings from the survey include:

• One-in-five (19 per cent) women under 35 are very likely to start their own business in the next five years
• 42 per cent of potential women entrepreneurs believe access to capital would be the largest challenge if they were to start their own business, down from 52 per cent in 2012

Regional Breakdown

	TOTAL	ATL	QC	ON	MB/SK	AB	BC
Percentage of women who are likely to start their own business in the next 10 years	36	25	21	42	35	36	49
Percentage of women who say they would consider starting their own business if given the opportunity to do so as an opportunity to do something they love	57	59	52	58	59	62	59
Percentage of women who say they would consider starting their own business if given the opportunity who see access to capital as the biggest challenge to owning a business	42	26	33	50	44	47	40

For Canadian women who would see themselves as potential small business owners, traditional gender preferences still apply. The survey revealed:

• 19 per cent would start a business in the food and hospitality sector, and 15 per cent in the arts/entertainment/recreation sector
• Only five per cent would want to become an entrepreneur in information technology and four per cent in a skilled trade

Regional Sector Breakdown

	TOTAL	ATL	QC	ON	MB/SK	AB	BC
Percentage of women who would start a business in the food and hospitality sector	19	25	21	17	24	19	11
Percentage of women who would start a business in the arts and entertainment sector	15	6	17	14	7	11	21
Percentage of women who would start a business in the health/social assistance sector	11	6	15	11	12	8	7

These preferences align with government statistics that show food and accommodation industries have the highest share of businesses where women are the majority-owners.

BMO and International Women's Day

Events are being held in local communities across the country to celebrate the achievements of women in business and support International Women's Day. Visit bmo.com/smallbusiness for more information on locations in your area.

BMO Bank of Montreal has a long history of championing the advancement of women in Canadian business. BMO is a partner with national organizations including: Catalyst, WEConnect Canada, Women Presidents' Organization and Canadian Women's Foundation. BMO is also the founding and leading partner in development for GroYouzBiz.

To support International Women's Day, happening on March 8^th, BMO will be donating $2 dollars to the Canadian Women's Foundation for each tweet and retweet of the #BMOIWD hashtag, up to a maximum of $10,000.

At BMO, entrepreneurs can find information on all aspects of business ownership at the BMO SmartSteps® for Business Community.

The Pollara online survey was completed between February 14 and February 19, 2013, with a sample of 1,040 Canadians 18 years of age and over. A probability sample of this size would yield results accurate to ± 3.0 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

About BMO Financial Group

Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified North American financial services organization. With total assets of $542 billion as at January 31, 2013, and more than 46,000 employees, BMO Financial Group provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and solutions.