{"id":12361,"date":"2017-05-10T09:44:25","date_gmt":"2017-05-10T16:44:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=12361"},"modified":"2025-11-20T18:36:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T02:36:17","slug":"venturous-voices-the-rise-of-the-outdoorsy-female-entrepreneur","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/camp\/venturous-voices-the-rise-of-the-outdoorsy-female-entrepreneur","title":{"rendered":"Venturous Voices: The Rise of the Outdoorsy Female Entrepreneur"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is an exciting time to be a woman who thrives in the outdoors. Our role is a dynamic one\u2014it\u2019s coming in and out of focus as we choose which boots we want to fill. The past decade has brought about exponential growth in the number of women who want to create products and services for women. This is what this our film documentary, \u201cVenturous Voices,\u201d is all about.<\/p>\n

Starting a business is as hard as it is rewarding. It\u2019s rife with friction. It\u2019s working into the night and reminding yourself to celebrate the smallest of victories. It\u2019s wrapping your whole heart around a problem because you know it can be solved. And it\u2019s not so different from the challenges we face in the outdoors. If you\u2019re reading this, you probably enjoy stepping outside. You live and breathe the demands relevant to your skill set. Why? Because the prize of the mountain view or perfect swell or fluffy powder is sweeter for that discomfort.<\/p>\n

My partner Jessie Davis and I set out to make a film about entrepreneurial women in the outdoor industry because we were curious. We\u2019ve been quietly watching a movement of women-led businesses within the outdoor space that we love and we noticed that it was part of a trend that transcended industry. According to the 2016 State of Women-Owned Businesses Report<\/a>, the number of women-owned businesses has increased by 45% in the last ten years. This is five times that of businesses nationwide, and while this is a thrilling statistic, we couldn\u2019t find any research about the outdoor industry. We decided to seek out the voices of the venturous women who are carving out the change they want to see in the outdoors.<\/p>\n

While conceptualizing the documentary in the fall of 2015, Jessie and I started a spreadsheet of businesses. We walked the halls of the big Outdoor Retailer show and scoured the internet for female entrepreneurs. It was slow at first. We feared that maybe these women didn\u2019t exist. But as time passed and our knowledge of the industry grew, the rows in the spreadsheet accumulated. We narrowed down our subjects to the voices of four venturers who are representative of the future of the outdoor industry.<\/p>\n

We feature:<\/p>\n

Alyssa Ravasio: The Problem Solver<\/h4>\n

\"Alyssa<\/p>\n

Founder of the technology startup, Hipcamp<\/a>. She wanted a better way to book a campsite online, so she learned how to code. And when she realized public campgrounds were getting crowded, she reached out to private landowners to create new campsites. Alyssa\u2019s drive is contagious.<\/p>\n

Jenny Amaraneni and Dana Holliday: The Humanitarans<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

The co-founders of SOLO eyewear<\/a> are selling sustainably made sunglasses so they can help fund eyecare in developing countries. Their partnership keeps them moving forward, even through the lows that are so emblematic of entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n

Chelsea Griffie: The Guide<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

Growing up near Chicago, Chelsea didn\u2019t have easy access to the outdoors. As a result, she\u2019s devoted her life to bridging the gap for others through her nonprofit, Los Angeles Wilderness Training<\/a>. Chelsea has found that starting a nonprofit is a lot like starting a business, and while she doesn\u2019t have as much time for rock climbing as she used to, the rewards are equally satisfying.<\/p>\n

Jeanine Pesce: The Futurist<\/h4>\n

\"Jeanine<\/p>\n

Jeanine has an eye for what\u2019s next, and she brings that insight to her outdoor trend consultancy and print magazine, RANGE<\/a>. She identified the \u201cmodern outdoorswoman\u201d in early 2015 because she wanted to see more brands talking to creative women living in urban environments. As a mother to a young daughter, she\u2019s continually recalibrating her work\/life balance.<\/p>\n

As filmmakers and entrepreneurs ourselves, filming these women was a little like looking in the mirror. We too work long hours. We have scraped the bottom of our checking accounts and been fooled by the false summits of building a life for ourselves. We made \u201cVenturous Voices\u201d partly because we were fascinated by the entrepreneurial psyche and curious to find out if we were alone in our experiences. In making the film and getting to know these five women, we learned that it\u2019s important to stop along one\u2019s venturous trail and take in the view. We gained new appreciation for our support systems. We found that it\u2019s always possible to pivot when nothing is going your way. We learned that if they can do it, so can you.<\/p>\n

And we\u2019re thrilled to share their stories with you.<\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is an exciting time to be a woman who thrives in the outdoors. Our role is a dynamic one\u2014it\u2019s coming in and out of focus as we choose which boots we want to fill. The past decade has brought about exponential growth in the number of women who want to create products and services […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":12363,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[733,726,725,651],"internal-tag":[736,1672],"class_list":["post-12361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-camp","tag-co-op-cinema","tag-force-of-nature","tag-video","tag-women","post_format-video","internal-tag-gale-straub","internal-tag-pre-redirect-camp"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/camp\/venturous-voices-the-rise-of-the-outdoorsy-female-entrepreneur","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Venturous Voices: The Rise of the Outdoorsy Female Entrepreneur","url":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/camp\/venturous-voices-the-rise-of-the-outdoorsy-female-entrepreneur","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/camp\/venturous-voices-the-rise-of-the-outdoorsy-female-entrepreneur"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/05\/Gale-Straub-Venturous-Voices-27-of-40.jpg?resize=150%2C150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/05\/Gale-Straub-Venturous-Voices-27-of-40.jpg?fit=1500%2C1000"},"articleSection":"Camp","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Angela Crampton"}],"creator":["Angela Crampton"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Uncommon Path \u2013 An REI Co-op Publication","logo":""},"keywords":["co-op cinema","force of nature","video","women"],"dateCreated":"2017-05-10T16:44:25Z","datePublished":"2017-05-10T16:44:25Z","dateModified":"2025-11-21T02:36:17Z"},"rendered":"